Firefly, Supernatural 1. The Aftermath

**Hello people! *runs from angry followers* Okay, so I know that I promised a different story to be out by mid July and it's now August, but this one wouldn't leave me alone! Originally, I had planned for this to be a sort of continuation of that story(a Doctor Who/Supernatural crossover dealing with the two Amy's), but this just worked so much better by itself. I hope you enjoy!**

Amy awoke with a gasp. She looked around in confusion. She was in a bed, in the motel room she had gotten when she and Jacob ran. She remembered everything that had happened. She remembered her encounter with Sam and him leaving her alone after discovering about her son. She remembered running and finding Dean in her motel room. She remembered him stabbing her and falling down. She reached down and looked at her stomach. She couldn't hold in the small gasp that escaped her lips when she saw the large bloodstain on her stomach. She lifted her shirt up, but there wasn't even a mark.

"Am I in purgatory?" She wondered. Something didn't sit right with her. She wasn't human. She didn't have a soul that would go to heaven. She would go to Purgatory like every other monster out there, but when she imagined it, she always imagined something hell-like. An old motel room certainly wasn't that. She turned as the door opened.

"Mom?" A small voice asked.

"J- Jacob?" She stuttered.

She felt a grin work it's way over her face as he ran towards her with a large smile on his face. He jumped onto the bed and gave her a large hug. He buried his face in her hair and she felt a single tear run down her face.

"You're alright," he murmured.

"What happened?" Amy asked, confused. She had been positive that Dean had gotten her in the heart. As a Kitsune, she was able to heal more quickly and survive more than a human, but she shouldn't have been able to survive a direct stab to the heart.

Jacob hesitated before answering. "The man barely missed your heart. I thought that you were dead. I ran to you and realized that you were barely breathing. I called an ambulance- you always said that so long as we didn't show our claws or eyes, we seem the same as humans, right? Well, it worked and they saved you. I got lucky. The room they put you in was on the first floor. Once they said that your condition was stable enough to be moved, I knew that I had to work fast before they moved you to a higher floor. I... Umm... I dragged you out the window. This place is only two blocks from the hospital so I managed to make my way back. This was two days ago. I wasn't sure if you were going to wake up or not."

"And you did all this by yourself?" Amy asked. Her son was only eight after all. This seemed like way to big of an accomplishment for him to achieve, even with some of the emergency situation things she had taught him.

Again with the hesitation.

"Yes," he said said firmly.

Amy was still doubtful, but she was happy to be alive and have her son with her so she ignored it.

* * *

"Jacob! You're going to miss the bus if you don't hurry!" Amy called through their new house a few months later. Things had been going well for them. She had changed their names to Amy and Jacob Williams. Not as nice as Pond in her opinion, but they needed the anonymity. She got the license plate on her car changed (she wouldn't forget that again) and even managed to find a job at the local hospital working in the morgue. All in all, things were working out well.

Jacob had started school as a fourth grader. It was a higher grade then he should be in, but he was a smart kid so they decided to just say that he was ten already. She found it interesting that after her near death experience, he had started to throw himself into more things. He was always trying to learn as much as he could, eager to get his hands on any book he could find. He also started Karate, saying that if somebody threatened her again, he wanted to be ready. Amy had sat down and given a firm talking to that if he ever met another hunter, he should run as fast as he could in the other direction. However, she couldn't ignore his plea to at least learn how to defend himself if it should come to that. Jacob had also started spending as much time as he possibly could with her. In hindsight, it probably wasn't that odd. She had nearly been taken from him at such a young age now he felt the need to spend every moment with her. He had convinced her to get a good camera to document their time together.

Back to the present, Jacob ran down the stairs, jumping down the last couple. He swung the backpack laying by the door onto his back.

"Bye Mom!" He said cheerfully as he gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

"Remember, you have Karate after school today," she reminded him.

"I know!" He said brightly before running out the door to catch the bus.

Amy sighed in happiness as the door closed behind him. She really had ended up with the best son in the world.

She was jolted out of her thoughts by the doorbell ringing. She went to answer and opened the door to a man in a suit. He had a sneaky sort of look about him, but fancy at the same time. A business man.

"Can I help you?" She asked.

"I just came to see how you were doing," the man said in an English accent

"I'm sorry, do I know you?" Amy asked. She was sure that she had never seen this man before.

"Oh, sorry. I'm Crowley. I helped your son on that dreadful night," the man introduced himself, offering his hand. Amy shook it gratefully before exclaiming.

"I knew he was hiding something from me! There was no way he was able to get me from the hospital back to the hotel room by himself! He must not have wanted to admit that he had gotten help from some random man. I don't know why you helped Jacob, but thank you."

Amy missed Crowley's raised eyebrow when she mentioned the hospital, but no other expressions made it onto his face except for slight amusement.

"Well, I had been in a couple situations myself where I could use a hand to get away from the officials," he said with a smirk.

Amy froze as a thought occurred to her.

"I'm not a hunter if that's what you're worried about," Crowley said, relieving her of her worries. "I know about the things in this world, but I don't care for getting my hands dirty."

"Well thank you again," Amy said sincerely. "Would you like to come in? I can make a good cup of tea or I have soda and stuff if that's more what you're into."

"A good cuppa wouldn't go unappreciated," Crowley said, nodding. She led him into the house and had him sit down on the sofa as she went to put the kettle on. The "art" of English tea making had been passed down through her family. When it was ready, she poured two cups and walked back to the living room. She handed a cup to Crowley who took a sip and hummed appreciatively.

"Now here's an American who can actually make tea. I might need to come over more often," he joked.

"My great great grandmother was Scottish and her husband was English. They made sure that my grandmother always remembered her roots, even if my mother didn't really follow them. I was named after her, my great great grandmother."

"The tea making skills were certainly preserved," Crowley said, saluting her with his cup. Idle chatter continued through the day. Crowley was especially interested to hear about her encounters with the Winchester brothers, who he had apparently met before. She didn't even realize how late it had gotten until she heard the door open.

"I'm home!" Jacob called.

"I'm in here, Sweetie!" Amy called. Jacob walked casually into the living room but froze when he saw Crowley.

"Hello, young man," Crowley said calmly, getting up from his spot.

"You didn't tell me that Mr. Crowley helped you," Amy reprimanded her son. "I wouldn't have been mad if you told me that you had help getting me out of the hospital."

Jacob relaxed marginally when she spoke but he wouldn't take his eyes off Crowley. "What are you doing here?"

"I just wanted to make sure that you and your mum were nice, safe, and alive," Crowley said.

"Well, we're fine," Jacob said stiffly.

"Jacob, what's the matter with you?" Amy asked, appalled that her son would treat a guest, especially one that had helped them so much in the manner that he was.

"It's alright," Crowley said. "I should be leaving anyway. I wouldn't want to spoil your time together."

Was it her imagination, or had Jacob gotten even tenser with that last sentence?

"Thank you for stopping by," Amy said warmly as she walked Crowley towards the door.

"Thank you for the tea," he said. "Maybe I'll see you around some time?"

"Maybe. Don't know how long we're staying here, but anytime you're around, feel free to stop by," Amy said with a smile.

"I might take you up on that," Crowley said with a smirk.

* * *

It was Jacob's fifteenth birthday when she saw Crowley again. They had moved to a new town and lied about Jacob's age again so he was beginning his senior year next fall. He had advanced so far academically that anything less than the senior year curriculum would bore him. Throw in a couple college classes on the side and you had one satisfied boy. Amy was a bit worried about her sons workload, especially at a young age, but he had insisted saying "Why wait when life is so short?". She agreed wholeheartedly.

This particular summer afternoon found the two of them at the park, having their own private celebration for Jacob. They were having a lovely time. She was so thankful that she never had to deal with the pouty teenage years, at least so far. Her son was not afraid to be seen with her in public. Although, to be honest, they were starting to look a bit like brother and sister. She didn't remember her own mother aging this well, but she wasn't complaining.

"Well what is this little love fest I've stumbled onto?" An accented voice asked behind them in amusement.

"Mr. Crowley!" Amy exclaimed, jumping up from the bench they were sitting on while Jacob remained sitting, glaring at his hands. "It's good to see you! How have you been?"

"Fair enough," Crowley shrugged.

"How did you find us?" Jacob asked. Amy wanted to reprimand him for his tone, but couldn't doubt the validity of his question.

Crowley chuckled. "When you work in the business I do, it makes it simple to track the people you invest in."

"What business is that? I never got to ask," Amy questioned.

"I deal with some... rarer items," Crowley said and Jacob snorted.

"I've heard of people who do things like that," Amy agreed, thinking of that Bella girl she had come across once.

"An interesting job, to be sure," Crowley said. "But I didn't come here to talk about work. I came here to wish you a happy birthday, Jacob."

Jacob looked up in surprise. "What? Why would you come here for that?"

Crowley shrugged. "I don't know. It's been nearly five years since we met. Imagine, in another five, it will be ten."

"I know how to do math, thank you," Jacob muttered.

"Yes, I've heard you're quite the child prodigy," Crowley said with a smirk. "Good on you."

"Life's to short," Jacob retorted.

"That it is," Crowley agreed. He pulled a book that looked to be a journal from the inside of his jacket and held it towards Jacob who took it hesitantly. "Happy birthday."

Amy tried to read the front, but to her confusion, it looked like it was in Chinese.

"I can't read Chinese," Jacob said in confusion.

"Then learn," Crowley said. "Believe me, you would love what's in that book."

"Thanks?" Jacob tried, but it was more of a question than anything else.

"Not a problem. I'll see you two sometime," Crowley said before walking off, whistling.

* * *

The year after Jacob graduated high school, he and Amy spent traveling the world. He was happy with the knowledge that he had a full ride to Harvard, where he would like to eventually get into their medical school, waiting for him when they got back.

Jacob adored college. He got into the Harvard Medical School, one of the best in the nation, at only seventeen. It was for reasons like this that Amy was completely astonished when Jacob decided to take the fall semester off after his first year in the medical program. Not only did he do that, but he decided to live at home as well and moved all of his stuff back to the small house she was renting outside of Boston. When she asked him about it, he just said that he wanted to spend more time with her and that's just what happened. Every other day, they were going to the park, or ice skating, or to the movies. The things he thought of were endless. Amy had been suspicious at first, but after a month or so of this sort of treatment, she fell into a routine that she thoroughly enjoyed.

That was, until his eighteenth birthday. The day had started off normally. They had gotten into the habit of going to the park every year after his fifteenth birthday. Most years, Crowley stopped by. On Jacob's sixteenth, Jacob was considerably more relaxed than on Crowley's previous visits, even thanking him profusely for the Chinese book that Crowley had given him the year before. The only time that Amy could see the previous tension that existed between the two was when Crowley would mention how long ago they had met.

This year, Crowley showed up as usual, but after spending his normal couple minutes with the family, he took Jacob aside.

"When are you going to tell her?" He asked.

"Why would I tell her?" Jacob asked. "I know it's coming. She doesn't need to be worrying as well."

So you think it's better for her to just discover on her own what you did?" Crowley asked incredulously.

"Why do you care?" Jacob asked angrily. "She's not your mother."

"No, but anyone who can make as good of a cup of tea as her demands some respect in my book. She deserves to know," Crowley said firmly.

Jacob gave him a weird look. "Are you saying that you, the mean, King of Hell, demon, actually considers my mother a friend."

"I enjoy her company," Crowley said shortly. "She's very... alive. But I'm afraid she won't like me much longer. You should tell her."

"Fine," Jacob huffed. "Are you going to be there?"

"And risk her ruining this suit with her claws?" Crowley asked with a small laugh. "I don't think so."

"Whatever. Just go," Jacob said, turning his back on Crowley.

"Tell her!" Crowley called after him.

Jacob stormed off, back to his mom.

"What's the matter?" Amy asked. "Where's Mr. Crowley?"

"He left," Jacob said then sighed. "Mom, there's something I need to tell you."

"What's happened," Amy asked, concerned.

"I need to tell you the truth."

"The truth about what?" Amy asked, completely confused.

"The truth about that night. The night I met Crowley. The night you died."

**So? How was it?! This story will be updated every Sunday! I have four complete chapters done now with around 3000 words each so no worries on updates. Obviously, there will be a few mystery elements that will be revealed in later chapter, but I reckon that I'm pretty terrible at leaving hints so everybody can guess what the mysteries are. If not, wow, I'm good at my job! Feel free to guess:) Please Favorite/Follow/Review! If you want to leave a review but aren't sure what to say (yeah, it happens, I know) just tell me... Umm... Who's your favorite character on both Supernatural and Firefly? Gabriel is my favorite on Supernatural and River on Firefly:)**


	2. The Collection

**Well here you go! I know that this isn't a very big category, so I wanted to give a shout out to Lord Rebecca-sama for following this story and a HUGE thank you to Sherlock's Little Detective for reviewing! I hope that I didn't disappoint!**

_"The truth about that night. The night I met Crowley. The night you died."_

"What are you talking about, Sweetie? I survived that night."

"No, you didn't, Mom," Jacob replied sadly. "Dean didn't miss. He got you straight in the heart. You died. Right there in front of me and all I could do was watch."

"But I'm fine now!" Amy protested.

Jacob wouldn't meet her eyes. "Because I made sure that you were."

"Jacob, what did you do?" Amy asked with a dangerous note in her voice.

"Crowley helped me," Jacob said, his voice catching in his throat. "Except, he's not human. He's a demon."

Amy looked at her son in horror. "Oh, no. Jacob, please tell me you didn't..."

"I was eight!" He shouted before quieting down. "I was eight and my mother had died right in front of me. I didn't know where to go or what to do. I remembered you telling me a story of a demon deal once, so I looked up how to do it. I made up the box and went to a crossroads. The look on Crowley's face when he saw that a child had summoned him..."

Jacob trailed off with a small smile on his face. Amy was feeling numb. The betrayal by not only her son but somebody she considered to be a friend was almost too much for her. She nodded silently for Jacob to continue. She had to know the rest of this story.

"He was going to give me the normal deal, the ten years for the rest of your life, but I demanded more. He asked me why I thought that I should be allowed a different deal, so I revealed to him what we were. Our souls are more valuable to him, as they contain more power since we are not human. Purgatory doesn't care who enters so long as nothing exits. He would easily be able to take my soul for himself and nobody would care. I agreed to the deal. He said that I was lucky that I hadn't waited any longer to come to him because your soul was still retrievable as it hadn't finished the transition to Purgatory. He put you back and you woke up, healed, like nothing had ever happened. I never wanted you to know what I had given up that day. I decided that since I would have such a short life, I would have to make the most of it. Learn as much as I could, explore, and... spend time with you."

Jacob looked up as he said this last part and Amy could feel her eyes soften slightly in sympathy at the lost look on his face. He did what any scared little boy would do, but that didn't excuse him. She was so angry at the moment she couldn't even describe. Her son was suppose to live longer than her. No parent should have to outlive their child. This was just not the way of the world. And damn Crowley! That two faced bitch could rot for all she cared and she wouldn't shed a tear. He would take away her son in a few months time. Oh, yes. She could do the math. She had nearly died the fall after Jacob had turned eight and now he was turning eighteen. The two of them had kept this a secret from her for ten years! She stopped her quiet rant to herself as a thought occurred to her.

"Jacob," she started carefully. "What else did you ask for? You said that you were able to ask for more because of your special soul. What did you ask for?"

Jacob looked at her mournfully. "I wasn't thinking when I made the deal. I wasn't thinking of what you would want, I was just thinking that the world couldn't survive without you. Think about it. There have been enough clues over the years. You've noticed. I'm positive that you noticed."

Amy look at her son in confusion before closing her eyes and thinking about everything he had just said and trying to remember anything unusual that had happened over the past ten years.

"Purgatory only cares about people trying to leave," she murmured with her eyes closed. Her eyes flashed open and she looked at Jacob in horror. "Please tell me you didn't..."

Jacob lowered his head in shame. "I'm sorry, Mom."

Amy closed her eyes again and sucked all of her feelings back into herself before putting them in a box and locking them up. She would deal with her own pain later. For now, she just had to be there for her son. She pulled Jacob into a hug. He was stiff at first but eventually sunk into her embrace. She could feel wetness on her shoulder from where he started crying silently.

"We'll deal with this," she said quietly, as much for herself as for Jacob. "We'll deal."

* * *

Three months later and it was only three days until Jacob's time. She and Jacob had spent every moment together. They tried not to think about the all too close future and just concentrate on the now. They only had a limited amount of time to make the most of it.

They hadn't had a permanent home in the past few months. Amy had put all of their stuff into storage and decided to just go with the flow. Mirroring their past trip, they visited all of Jacob's favorite places again. In the end, they ended up back where everything had started, in Montana. They visited Jacob's old school and said hello to some past friends that still lived visited their old house and saw the changes that had been done. Eventually, both got up the courage to visit the motel room where Amy had been stabbed.

"Isn't this touching?" The all too familiar voice said as Amy and Jacob sat on the bed that Amy had been lying on.

"Go away!" Amy spat immediately. She got up and moved so that she was in front of Jacob. Her claws came out almost without bidding and her eyes flashed yellow. "There is still three days left. You are not taking him early!"

Crowley raised an eyebrow at her. "Not that I was planning to. I'm a man of my word. Although sometimes I wish that I wasn't."

Crowley almost looked remorseful as he watch Amy.

"And I'm suppose to believe that you actually regret this?!" Amy shouted. "No. You are not my friend. You son of a bitch have no place in my life any more so go the hell away!"

Crowley still looked at her sadly. "I am sorry," he said quietly before disappearing.

"That oaf! I can't believe that he decided to come here early!" Amy exclaimed as she retracted her claws.. "And to just 'pretend' that he was sorry?!"

"It's okay, Mom," Jacob said quietly, getting up and putting his hands on her shoulders.

"No, it's not okay!" Amy shouted before breaking into tears. "I thought he was my friend, but he was only protecting an investment! And then now, when I finally discover the truth, he comes and apologizes for everything?! He, who is going to take my son away in three days, is asking for my forgiveness?! No! He will not have it! He's the demon. If he truly cares, why doesn't he change the deal?"

"Because I asked him not to," Jacob said admitted quietly.

"What?" Amy asked, looking up in confusion.

Jacob sighed. "He came to me once, when I was at Harvard. I thought that he was just there to taunt me a bit more, but he sat me down. He had me think about my life so far and about the life I wish I could have and he gave me a choice. He couldn't outright change the contract, but he could mirror the effects. So that would mean that I would be the one living forever and you would die. He begged me to even _consider_ his offer. He knew how much pain you would be in if you saw me die. But I refused. I could never kill you mom, even if I knew that you would prefer dying yourself to outliving me. He would try to remind me of his offer whenever he could. I... I think he really does care for you, Mom. I don't know what happened to him to even be able to show that sort of compassion since he is a demon, but he definitely feels something."

"Then he needs to come back!" Amy demanded. "You have to take that deal!"

"I will not!" Jacob shouted. "Mom, you deserve so much more than what life has given you so far. Even Crowley agrees with me on that."

"And you don't think that you deserve the same opportunity to live?!" Amy shouted back. "You're only eighteen!"

"And it's been the best eighteen years anybody could ask for! I knew, when I took the deal, that you would react like this. That's why I decided to keep this all a secret. I didn't want you worrying. Mom, you have given me everything in life. It's my turn to give to you."

"But what would I live for?" Amy asked, her tears returning. "You are everything to me. I don't have anybody else."

"Then find somebody," Jacob said firmly. "You brighten people's day by stepping in the room. Have you never noticed that? Find somebody and make their life better because you can. Go to college again and find something that you truly love to do, not just so that you can survive. Live, Mom."

"I don't think I can."

"You're going to have to," Jacob stated solemnly before grabbing his mother's hand and dragging her towards the bathroom. "Come on now. Get cleaned up. We still have two and a half days to spend together. I don't want to spoil one second of it."

Amy watched Jacob carefully the next day and the day after. She had heard stories of the "hallucination" period before where the demon deal victims would start to hear the sound of hellhounds barking for up to a week in advance, but Jacob showed no signs of hearing anything unusual. He was his normal, cheerful self.

On the outside at least. He was putting up a front. A good one, but she could still see right through. He was terrified. He had no idea what was coming for him no matter for how long he had known his fate to be. Amy never commented on that trace of fear. She had a hard enough time forgetting her own worries.

Their last day together, they spent at the park. Parks had somehow become their place to share close, bonding days. They sat on a bench and watched the small lake. Just sitting there was peaceful. Trying not to think was impossible, but the calming water made everything seem so far away.

That night in their hotel room, Jacob went to bed early. He had made the deal in the early hours of the morning, so it was logical to think that was his due date. Amy had no idea how he was able to fall asleep so easily. She was a nervous wreck. She would never hear her son's voice again or listen to him laugh. She felt numb, staring at him asleep in the other bed.

There was a knock on the door and Amy was quickly on her guard. She slipped out of bed and opened the door quietly.

"Hello, Amy," Crowley said quietly. "May I come in?"

Amy stepped to the side and let the demon enter. There was nothing she could do. It didn't matter that she was strong or fast or had claws, the demon would be able to stop her quickly. She closed the door quietly as Crowley pulled a chair next to Jacob's bed.

"He is a brave boy," Crowley murmured.

"He is," Amy said shortly. She didn't trust her voice at the moment.

Crowley looked at her in sadness. "I don't take any pleasure in this, you know."

"Like hell you don't," Amy spat.

"I never told you about my time with the Winchester's, did I?" Crowley asked.

"I don't think that now is the time for stories, Demon," Amy bit back.

"Never the less, I'll still tell you so that you may understand that I do actually despise this task."

Seeing that Crowley would tell her the story whether she wanted to be told or not, Amy sat down on the other bed with a sigh and made a small gesture for him to continue.

"The Winchesters and I had had so many encounters before. We stopped the apocalypse together, then fought each other as I and the angel Castiel worked together to open Purgatory. Needless to say, that whole scheme failed pretty miserably and ended with the Leviathans being released. Nothing good came from them being here and eventually Dean was able to get rid of them, but those creatures had brought these items called the tablets to my attention. There were three tablets, one for Leviathans, one for angels, and one for demons. Each tablet said many different things: how to fight the creature, how to trap them, weakness. Unfortunately, you needed a prophet to interpret the writing. I am not proud of what I did during those years. It was also during this time that I had first made the deal with your son. The Winchesters managed to get their hands on both a prophet, Kevin, and the demon tablet. The prophet was able to discover a way to seal the gates of hell forever. One person had to complete three trials. The brothers had meant for Dean to complete the trials but it ended being Sam instead. Sam completed the first two tasks, but had a difficult time with the third. The third trial was to turn a demon human again."

With this, Crowley looked up at Amy who had to shut her mouth at the impossible story she was being told.

"I received blood injections every day," Crowley continued quietly. "After a while, I could begin to feel my humanity return, bit by bit. I started to feel remorse, to want forgiveness for my centuries of torturing others."

Crowley got a far away look in his eye, but quickly shook it off and continued with the story.

"To make a long story short, if Sam completed the trials, he would've been killed as the ultimate sacrifice. Needless to say, I was never turned completely human. I was eventually released, but the damage had been done. I was a demon with human feelings. I put on a good show for everybody else, but really, I was just tired. I had met with you that one time a few months after the deal had been made, but I hadn't even thought of you two since. Not until I was summoned to the future by a person I cannot name to give your son that Chinese journal."

"I cannot say what it is," Crowley said, holding up his hands when Amy opened her mouth. "And I will be taking it with me when I finish here as it's no good to leave future knowledge about, but that book would've been extremely important to Jacob. When I saw you two at the park that day, I remembered how kind you had been the first time we had met. You were loving and funny and a brilliant mother. Something about you intrigued me. You could even manage to put a smile on my face. I don't know if it was the humanity in me speaking, but I ended up enjoying your company and looking forward to Jacob's birthday each year."

Crowley looked down at Jacob again. "But I also began to dread the deal that I had set up years previously. I couldn't imagine taking your son from you and never see you smile or laugh again. I tried to get Jacob to change the deal, but he was adamant."

"Which brings us to now," Amy finished quietly.

"Which brings us to now," Crowley agreed.

"If you're going to set the hellhounds on him, please tell me so I can leave the room," Amy said softly.

"You think that after everything I just told you, I could bare to set my hellhounds on the boy?!" Crowley exclaimed. His face softened as he looked down at Jacob. "No. There is a kinder way."

Crowley reached down and put his hand on Jacob's forehead. He closed his eyes and concentrated. A wisp of silver smoke exited Jacob's mouth followed by a steady stream. Crowley closed his hand around the smoke and it disappeared.

"It's done," he said softly, getting up.

Amy slowly made her way towards her son. It didn't look like anything had changed, but she could feel that missing something. She leaned down and kissed her son on the forehead. That was her limit and she turned away from him as silent tears began to run down her face. She heard Crowley murmur a few words and when she turned back, Jacob's body was gone.

"He has been buried in the cemetery near your old house if you ever want to visit his grave," Crowley said. "If you ever need anything, it's not too difficult to find a summoning spell."

With that, he left the now childless mother to mourn.

**So there we have it. Jacob's death:( I hope that didn't come as too big of a surprise to you. If you didn't catch on, the "extra" thing that Jacob asked for was for his mother to live forever. Sorry that plot line wasn't very smooth, but I really wanted to find a way to get her into the Firefly universe.**

**Anyways! Next chapter we've got a bit of spot the fandom(sorry, I really couldn't help myself). If you have a particular fandom you want to see, either movie, tv show, or book, and I know enough about it, I'll put it in so please review! The only limitation is to please make sure that it could fit with the story (****i.e., on Earth, the right time period, etc.) Other than that, thank you for reading! I'll see you next Sunday with the next chapter!**


	3. The Years

**Welcome one and all to the next chapter! Before getting down to ****business, I'd like to thank CTYerFOREVER and Mad Bobert for following. I didn't get any reviews which made me sad:( Now for this chapter, I'm going to say right now that it's a bit of a filler covering the years between the Supernatural timeline and Firefly. I did mention that there would be a bit of "spot the fandom" last chapter so see if you can guess all of them!**

"You bloody woman! What do you think you're doing!" Crowley yelled as he stormed into the hotel room that Amy had yet to leave.

She was numb. All grief had left by now, leaving her empty. She didn't need human food technically, but she could only survive without the pituitary glands for about a week or so before feeding again. She hadn't fed in nearly two weeks now.

"Do you think that starving yourself is going to work?! Jacob asked for you to live forever. Do you think that this is honoring his memory?!" Crowley continued.

"There's nothing left for me here," Amy moaned. "Why can't I die? Why should I be the only creature on Earth that doesn't have the privilege to die?"

"You're only looking at immortality as a curse," Crowley disagreed. "You now have infinite time on your hands. Use it the way Jacob wished for you to."

"Doing what? I don't have a family anymore. No close friends. Nobody would care if I were gone."

"I would care," Crowley said quietly. He grabbed Amy's hand. "Come with me."

"Where are we going?" Amy asked as she let herself get dragged out of her bed.

"To my house," Crowley answered before colors twisted around her and she found herself in a lavish room that she didn't recognize.

"What am I doing here, Crowley?" Amy asked with a sigh.

"Welcome to Hell," Crowley said with a grin.

"Not exactly what I was expecting," Amy responded, looking around.

"Just one of the perks. I won't take you to any of the torturing parts. Now come. There's something I want to show you."

Crowley led her through the large house. Amy, against her better judgement, was admiring the house. He led her to a parlor where she saw a familiar face, sitting in a chair by the fire, reading a book.

"Jacob?" She asked quietly. Her son immediately put the book down and faced her at the sound of her voice.

"Mom!" He exclaimed and rushed over to give her a hug. "What are you doing here?"

Jacob held her at arm's length and examined Amy thoroughly. "And what the hell did you do with yourself?!"

"Language," Amy chided without a second thought. She sighed and looked down at herself. She was a mess. She hadn't eaten and had barely moved. She was way too skinny and her skin was pale. Her clothes were wrinkled and her hair was matted from not brushing it. "I was in depression."

"That's it? That's all you can say?!" Jacob exclaimed, pacing the room. "Damn it, Mom! I gave you forever to enjoy it, not to waste it worrying about me!"

"And how have you been?" Amy asked, trying to get off the subject of her wellbeing.

Jacob's eyes lit up. "It's awesome. Crowley has a wonderful book collection that I'm slowly working my way through. He's not around all that often, but if I call, he always comes back. Anything I need, he'll find a way to get it."

"Sounds wonderful," Amy said wistfully. Jacob caught her expression before she could cover it up.

"But I still miss you, Mom," Jacob assured her quickly.

"Well it sounds like you have a wonderful life down here, Sweetie."

"I have some food," Crowley said, coming in again with a silver tray after he had snuck out some time ago to give the mother and son privacy. Amy gave him a smile as she saw the pieces of meat that she could easily identify as her normal food source. Now that she could accept eating again, she was famished. She quickly made up a plate for herself and offered some to her son, but he declined, saying that he no longer needed to eat.

They three had a wonderful afternoon together. Without Amy's cloud of depression hanging over her, she was once again the life and joy of the gathering. After several hours had passed and the conversation died down, Crowley got around to some serious matters.

"I didn't just ask you down here to see Jacob," Crawley told Amy.

"What's the matter?" Amy asked.

"I would like to make you a deal," Crowley announced.

"What sort of deal?" Amy asked cautiously. "What do you want from me?"

"All I want is for you to promise to take care of yourself in exchange for once a year, on Jacob's birthday, I'll bring you down here and you can visit for the day."

Crowley held his hand up as he could see that Amy was about to protest. "Yes, once a year. You're still very much alive and you belong topside, not down here. I'm technically breaking the rules already letting you down here."

"I accept," Amy said immediately. "Thank you."

Crowley nodded and stood up. "We should get going. I'll give you time to say goodbye."

Amy stood up and gave her son a hug. "I'll see you in a year."

She couldn't say why, but Jacob looked very depressed by her remark. "Yeah, sure. A year."

With one final kiss to the check, she left Jacob to his books to go find Crowley.

"Thank you for this opportunity," she said when they got back to the hotel room.

"Don't forget your promise," Crowley responded.

"I won't," Amy promised. Crowley left with a nod.

* * *

With her consciousness mostly cleared, Amy started doing, well, whatever the hell she wanted. She would go to college and get a degree in some random thing, all the while working in some hospital for both the money and the food, only to pack up and leave just as soon as she was finished to go on another world tour. Most of the time, she would settle someplace for four years to get a degree then move on before people noticed that she wasn't ageing. She had to admit that if she had to be frozen at any age, mid thirties was perfect. It was old enough to get a well paying job but young enough to not have any problems physically. She met so many interesting people during her travels and had gone to wonderful places.

In the process of tracking down her great great grandparents, a random, spur of the moment thing, she came across a confusing mess of information that led to an older man in a dark suit and his... What did he call it? A yes, companion. He had flinched at the sound of her name, but had eventually broken down and given her some confusing explanation of time traveling and aliens. Amy eventually decided that she was better off not knowing the entire story and had gone to London to unearth some more conspiracies where she met a strange man with dark, curly hair in a black coat and blue scarf and his friend, a sandy haired doctor. The first man mentioned had been rather rude and, after declaring that she was a mess of contradictions, would never leave her alone. Needless to say, that, while she enjoyed the company of his friend, she had high tailed it back to America after she completed the degree in literature she was working on.

She moved to a small town in Virginia where she thought that she might have to go on a hunt for the first time from the sheer amount of vampires running around. She was quicker than humans and stronger so it wouldn't be that difficult to stake them(as this particular type needed to be), but she met them and got to know how they worked. Once she figured out that the two brothers and their friends didn't kill humans, she decided to leave them alone. Her time at the university nearby was nearly done anyway. This time she had focused on all sorts of religion, theology, and even the mystical and supernatural.

Next she moved to a larger city on the east coast and started to work on a degree in computer science. She got an internship at a big company and worked with a computer genius there that had a very... particular relationship with her boss. No, get your head out of the gutter! The type where she knows that her boss is a crime fighting vigilantly who she assists at night. It hadn't taken Amy long to figure out that secret. When she confronted the boss about the aforementioned hobby and put up a surprisingly good fight(she may not have had much training, but she was quicker and stronger even if she tried to tone down those qualities a bit so she seemed more human) he invited her to be a part of the small team. He taught her how to really fight well and use all manner of weapons, especially his favorite: the bow. After she finished the computer science degree and decided to move on again, he suggested to go to another city were a friend of his could continue her training.

She was as much of a helper to the friend as he was to her, as she was medically trained. He had been injured badly in the past, but she was able to help with his injuries and any new ones that came up while getting a degree in mechanical engineering to help design new tech at the same time.

After spending so many years learning from schools, she decided to go and explore more cultures. She, like Jacob, was naturally a quick learner so she would stay in one country for a year or two to learn the language and move on. When she had finished that crusade, she was fluent in Spanish, French, Russian, Mandarin(most common form of Chinese), Italian, and could read Latin and Greek.

Every year she would visit her son in Hell. Jacob adored his life with Crowley and even considered him to be a bit of a father figure. Even Amy considered him to be a part of the family, although she saw him more as her brother or even a mentor. Crowley had given up the whole "King of Hell" thing to just live his life in peace and quiet. He spent most of his time at his home in Hell with Jacob. Amy had been horrified when she learned that one year on Earth was equal to forty in Hell, but Jacob assured her that her one visit every forty years was better than not seeing her at all.

Amy had gotten in the habit of keeping a journal of her travels and taking a camera with her everywhere. During her days with Jacob, she would sit down with him and Crowley and explain all that she had done and show them pictures. She never said anything, but she suspected that Crowley checked in on her sometimes because Jacob seemed familiar with some of her stories before she told them.

All in all, she was fairly happy with her life. Obviously she wished that her son was with her, but her life wasn't bad.

Humanity, however, was moving on with or without her and she had to keep with the times. Humans started looking towards the stars as they slowly destroyed the planet. Amy was probably the most educated person on the planet, but even she couldn't figure out a way to help. None of the degrees she had could truly help, even with the repeats.. When she felt that one field had advanced way further than her previous degree had allowed, she would take the course again. She had found absolute love in astronautical engineering. She loved ship engines. As countries began to take off for other star systems, she would design and create their engines. She finally left the planet herself when America and China decided to leave together.

It was difficult to hide the fact that she didn't age on a ship that she would be on for a several decades, but she managed. She had become so good at computers that she was able to mess with the records every time she needed to disappear and reappear on a different section of the ship, doing a different job. The most difficult issue for her was feeding. There were thousands of people on the ship, but many elderly had stayed behind since it was pretty certain that they would not survive the journey. Crowley was particularly helpful during this time, bringing her whatever she needed when she was not able to get the things herself.

It was during this time that she decided to change her name to Kaylee. Kaylee was a nice common name. She had been Amy for too long. Now that her time on Earth was over, she felt like a little part of her had died. She needed to have a new beginning. She had to admit, it wasn't easy to get used to people calling her Kaylee. It had been more spur of the moment than anything. She had been messing with the records when she suddenly decided to give herself a new name. When she mentioned this to Jacob and Crowley, Jacob had been happy that she was moving on. Crowley had flat out refused to call her something different _unless _they also happened to be in front of others. Then he'd be a _little _more careful.

When they landed, she was so happy to be on actual land again. Not that she could stay out for any long amount of time since the planet had not been terraformed yet, but it was still nice. Crowley had taken her up to the surface on Earth-That-Was, as people were calling it now, on her days where she got to visit Jacob, but those visits had to stop nearly forty years ago when the environment had become too unstable even for her.

China and the United States had decided to combine their governments to create one large empire called the Union of Allied Planets. Kaylee wasn't too sure how that that whole transition worked because the Chinese and American governments were still vastly different, but things went way more smoothly than she expected. The Alliance started spreading out further, terraforming more planets as they went and settling colonists.

Kaylee was extremely surprised when Crowley informed her that he wished to set up a more permanent residence on one of the planets. She had asked about Jacob, but Crowley had said that her son was fine being left alone. Actually, he craved it. Crowley had apparently gotten a bit house sick during the time that everybody had been on the ships. Jacob had demanded that when people really got settled that Crowley set something up not in Hell.

Kaylee had tried to get Crowley into the shipping business because that seemed like something the demon, who was truly a business man at heart, would thrive in, but she could only shake her head and laugh a bit when Crowley ended up getting involved in the smuggling business instead.

Kaylee had followed him about some and had done her own business things, working on engines and such. She could've had a fancy job designing tech and ships for the Alliance if she wanted, or even worked in one of the hospitals since she was more than qualified by this point, but she had started to get a sinking feeling in her stomach when she thought of the Alliance. She had mentioned this feeling to Crowley who had just looked at her and said to not look too close at the Alliance unless she wished to be taken away and, if they ever figured out who she was, experimented on. He said all of this with such certainty that she had no doubt that it was true. The Alliance was bad news, especially after the Unification war. She hadn't fought herself, but she had been privately rooting for the Browncoats, even working with Crowley to smuggle supplies to the rim.

She was on Persephone with Crowley, who was currently going by Badger, when she met them. The crew that would become her life.

**Now I fell like I need to explain this chapter a bit. I'm saying right off, I didn't like this chapter much. There were some things that needed to happen(****i.e., Amy/Kaylee's acceptance of her situation), but at the same time, it felt a bit rushed. Now as for the whole college thing and her learning so much, that was kind of modeled on what I would do if I had forever. Seriously, what would you do if you had centuries? So yes, she is going to be smart.**

**The other thing I would like to clarify is how her immortality is going to work. She can be hurt and she can feel pain to the same extent as she could before, just nothing would kill her now. The knife to the heart wouldn't kill her either, but it would _feel _like she had died before coming back so she's not going to be looking for trouble.**

**Oh, and one more thing(jeez, this is getting long), but Amy/Kaylee and Crowley will have NO romance anything going on. Other than that, thank you for reading! Please please please review! See if you can guess all of the random tv shows she jumped into! I'll give you a hint, there's four tv shows and one movie:)**

**We're going to meet the crew of Serenity next chapter!**


	4. The Beginning

**Hello everybody and welcome to part four! As it is not yet midnight where I live(although it's getting close), I believe I still got this out on time, if a bit later than normal. I know that last chapter sucked so I thank you all for struggling through that mess to reach this chapter. Without further ado, let's meet the Firefly crew! ...That rhymed.**

Captain Malcolm Reynolds was fairly quiet as he made the slow trek across the Eavesdown docks to meet up with Badger. His thoughts were occupied with the mechanic he had hired _Gou cao de _in the engine room. He had no idea what he was going to do.

His first mate, Zoe, walked silently beside him. That was one of the things that he liked about her, she didn't feel the need to talk all the time. He wasn't sure what he was going to do with his crew. Zoe hated the pilot he had hired. He had to admit, Wash's cheerful personality and endless jokes took some getting used to, but he was an excellent pilot. Bester was another issue. He was arrogant and _hwen dan_, but he unfortunately was an okay mechanic. Mal knew that as soon as he found one that even came close to Bester's level of expertise, that boy would be off his ship.

Mal and Zoe were stopped at the door that led to the underground complex that was Badger's base. That description made it sound like a government base, but it was more like a maze of tunnels that, while nicely taken care of, had uneven rock floors and walls. This was Mal's first meeting ever with Badger and he was hoping to be able to get a quick job to get into Badger's confidences. The word around Persephone was that Badger may not be particularly friendly or tell everything, but he would always keep a deal once struck. He seemed like the sort of guy that Mal wouldn't mind taking a few jobs from.

The two were let in and led to what looked like a fancy meeting room, something right out of the rich core planet dwellers homes. The floor was covered in a plush carpet and there was dark colored wooden paneling on the walls. There were a few paintings on the walls and a couple bookshelves filled with old tomes. Mal was surprised at that bit. Hardly anybody had real books anymore. It was so much cheaper to invest in one piece of technology that could hold all of your books instead of buying several books with _very_ expensive paper. In the center of the room was a beautiful wooden desk with several leather chairs in front of it and one more behind.

"How does a smuggler get this rich?" Mal muttered to Zoe who shrugged.

"You don't start as a smuggler," a voice answered. Mal and Zoe looked around and found that a man in an expensive looking business suit had entered the room from a door on the other end. This must be Badger. He was shorter than Mal was expecting.

"This business is just something that I enjoy," the man said, coming up to Mal and Zoe. He held out his hand. "'ello. I'm Badger."

"Captain Malcolm Reynolds," Mal replied amiably, shaking Badger's hand.

"First mate Zoe Alleyne," Zoe introduced herself.

"Pleasure," Badger said. He walked around to sit behind the desk and and gestured towards the chairs in front. "Please, sit. Let's talk business."

Mal and Zoe did as asked.

"We're working on establishing some more connections at the moment," Mal began. "We've been smuggling for a couple years now, but I believe you would find that we are good at our job."

"Hmm," Badger hummed. "Tell me about your crew."

Mal was confused by the odd request, most potential clients just wanted to know about the business itself, but complied. "We've got a pilot, Hoban Washburne. He's damn good at it too. Only got one other and that's our mechanic, but we're looking to replace him. We're on the look out for maybe one more fighter and perhaps somebody to rent out one of the shuttles, but that's it."

Badger hummed again. "I've heard of your pilot. One of the best from what I've heard, but pictures show that he could work on his fashion sense."

Mal managed to hold in his laughter, but Zoe had to give a little snort.

"I have a mechanic for you, if you'll have her," Badger said after a moment. "She's probably the best in the 'verse, but she's just looking for a bit of adventure. She's friendly and easy to like, but she's no wimp. She'll put up a good fight."

"Why would you help us find a mechanic?" Mal asked. "We haven't even done you a job yet."

Badger stood up and started pacing. "Because I can tell that you two are good people. Any successful business man can tell you that they get a sixth sense around people and I would consider trusting you with Kaylee. If you do take her, you're guaranteed jobs from me with full disclosure."

This was almost too good to be true. Mal couldn't believe their good luck. Get a good mechanic and guaranteed work? It shouldn't be possible.

"Can we meet this girl?" Mal asked, keeping a calm face even though he was jumping for joy inside.

"Sure," Badger shrugged. Mal expected him to call somebody to the door to fetch the girl, but Badger stood up and walked to the door in the back and stuck his head out. "Kaylee!"

Mal and Zoe exchanged a look at the very informal summoning. They were even more surprised when a girl who looked to be thirty practically skipped in.

"What's up, Crowley?" She asked cheerfully.

"I've got some people here that I would like you to meet," Badger explained and led her over to Mal and Zoe who stood up.

"Kaylee, this is Captain Malcolm Reynolds and his first mate, Zoe Alleyne. Captain, Ms. Alleyne, this is Kaylee."

"Hi!" Kaylee said happily. "How're you doing?"

Her speech was a bit unusual, but Mal shrugged it off. "We're fine, thank you. Badger here was telling us that you're a damn good mechanic."

Kaylee's eyes lit up. "Oh yes! I love ships, even built a few myself."

Mal looked her over with a careful eye. She was definitely energetic and cheerful, but maybe that would be what his ship needed. If she was as good as Badger said she was, she could definitely be a good addition to his crew.

"We're in the market at the moment," Mal explained. "Would you be willing to try us out?"

The way he phrased it made it very much Kaylee's choice as to whether or not she wished to join the crew. Both Badger and Kaylee had small smiles on their faces as they caught on.

"I'd be more than willing. What type of ship do you have?"

"We have a Firefly class," Mal answered. If it was possible, Kaylee's eyes lit up even more.

"I've always wanted to work on one of those beauties! I always love the concept. It's a shame they're not around much anymore."

Mal had to smile at the girl that had just complimented his ship before even meeting her. Kaylee was definitely on his good list so far.

"Well we're grounded at the moment for some reason that our current mechanic can't figure out. If you can get us in the air again, you've got the job," Mal offered.

"No problem," Kaylee said with a smile. "When would you like me down there?"

"Would this afternoon work?" Mal asked. "We're hoping to get moving soon."

"Sure thing," Kaylee said with another smile. "It was nice to meet you two. I'll see you tonight!"

With that, she skipped from the room again. Badger watched her go with a small chuckle. "She's quite the one, isn't she?"

"That she is," Mal agreed. He could already see Kaylee getting along with Wash and maybe should could even soften the battle-hardened Zoe a bit. "If she can get the job done, I can see her being a good part of the crew."

"Even if she doesn't get the job done, which I really doubt since the ship would have to be completely wrecked for her to not get it going again, she might stay anyway," Badger said with a small chuckle. "She loves those old Fireflies."

"If she keeps complimenting my ship, she might get the job even without having one ounce of mechanical ability," Mal said with a small laugh. Badger chuckled with him.

"But even if you don't take Kaylee on, I do have a job for you if you want it," Badger told them. "It's just a simple pillage. Some of my scouts reported a wreck about a week and a half journey from here. There's no Alliance in the area. It was a passenger ship, but it's engine blew. By the time anybody got a distress signal, nobody was still alive. The Alliance decided to just leave the ship drifting instead of going through the hassle of dragging it in. It's a bit far from a planet so nobody has really come across the wreckage. I don't even know what's on it. Grab anything valuable, bring it back. Simple."

"Sounds like a job we can do," Mal agreed before settling in to discuss money for the next hour. Yes, this arrangement could work well.

* * *

Kaylee was beyond excited. Okay, she hadn't been completely honest when she said that she had never worked on a Firefly before. In fact, she had helped design the first one. Unfortunately, the company didn't value the opinion of a thirty year old girl much so she was let go. If anything, the design for the first Firefly was the best and they just went downhill from there, but she couldn't tell them that for that would make her nearly eighty years old. If they let her, maybe she could rework the engine back to her original design.

She had packed a small trunk with everything she would need if she did go. For now, she would only bring her workbag with tools and such. She didn't want to assume too much. Most of her things would stay here. Crowley would take care of everything. He had promised aswell that if she ever did find a ship that she would want to stay on full time, he would bring her the food that she needed.

She hurried out of the complex with her bag over her shoulder. It didn't take long for her to find the Firefly ship. She stood outside, gazing at the incredible ship that may become her home. She read the name "Serenity" on the side. She remembered when the whole Serenity battle had been announced back here. She had no doubt that at least the Captain was a Browncoat.

"Well? Are you going to come in?"

She lowered her gaze to the ramp leading to the cargo bay. The Captain stood there, waiting for her. She nodded eagerly and walked up the ramp. She followed him back to the engine room where a blond was sleeping, propped up against a wall. Mal sent an evil grin to Kaylee before shouting at the top of his lungs.

"Bester!"

The man, apparently Bester, shot up and hit his head on a pipe. "Ow!"

"Bester, there's someone I'd like you to meet," Mal said impatiently. Bester looked around with sleep clouded eyes before finally seeing Kaylee.

"Who is she?"

"This is Kaylee," Mal said proudly, as though she were already a part of the team. "She's a mechanic. She's here to see if she can get Serenity off the ground."

"No Gorram girl can be a mechanic," Bester denied with a snort and a shake of his head. "Besides, the secondary grav boot is shot."

"I should kick your _pi gu __**(ass)**_ for that comment," Kaylee said absent mindedly as she dropped her bag down and slid herself underneath the engine.

"Besides, you're wrong," came the muffled continuation. "It's not the secondary grav boot. Your reg couple is bad."

"The... What?" Bester asked, flustered.

"This," Kaylee said, pointing to the part. When Bester still looked confused she sighed. "Whatever. It doesn't matter much anyways."

Kaylee pulled the part out and gave it to Mal. She didn't trust the Bester guy with any sort of machine part. She pointed to a wrench as she started tinkering with the engine. "Hand me that, please. These things don't really do much, just tend to gum up the works when it gets tacked. So I figure, why even have one? Better to just take your g-line, plug it straight into the port-pin-lock, and that should, uh..."

She smiled as the engine starts turning again. She turned to look at her audience. Mal was looking at her proudly.

"Badger wasn't lying 'bout your talent."

Kaylee glowed at the comment as Bester waved his hands at the part still in Mal's hands. "Don't we need this?"

Mal didn't even spare him a glance. "You've got the job if you want it."

"Really?" Kaylee asked in excitement.

"Really really."

"Thank you!"

"But Mal, what do you need two mechanics for?" Bester protested.

"I really don't," Mal said before walking away.

When Bester realized that he had just been fired, he turn to glare at Kaylee who shrugged and gave him an apologetic smile.

"You _Go Neong Yung Duh_!" He snarled. "You lost me my job!"

Kaylee stood there as he charged her. Her old training kicked in easily as he went to punch her sloppily. She leaned a bit to the side to avoid the punch (not that it would hurt much anyway) and kicked his legs out from under him while he was off balance. As she did that, she quickly extended the claws on one hand to cut his belt. His pants started to fall down as he hit the ground, tangling up his legs. She retracted her claws quickly before anyone could see.

I may be a _Go Neong Yung Duh_, but at least I can fix an engine," Kaylee said as she walked off.

She could hear Bester struggling to breathe as she exited the room to find Mal right outside. He was watching her in amazement.

"Where did you learn to do that?" He asked. "I was hoping that he wouldn't try anything stupid, but I suspected he might so I stayed close by to help just in case. Looks like you didn't need it."

"I can defend myself against that half-wit."

"I'll say," Mal said with a bit of a chuckle. "Come. I'll introduce you to the rest of the crew."

He led her up to the bridge where they found a blond haired man and Zoe watching a screen with a picture of the engine room. Bester was still on the floor, trying to figure out some way to keep his pants on. The blond was laughing out loud at the fired mechanic's struggles while Zoe had a faint smile. When she and Mal entered the room, both people turned to look at them. Zoe gave her a respectful smile while the man shook his head in amazement.

"You," he said, pointing at her, "are incredible. That man needed to be put in his place for ages! You're gonna be great on this team!"

Kaylee smiled at him for his praise and looked to Mal for introductions.

"Wash, this is Kaylee, our new mechanic. Kaylee, this is Wash, our pilot. And you've already met Zoe."

"It's nice to meet you," Kaylee said warmly as she shook hands with Wash. The man had a bright smile but a ridiculous mustache on his upper lip. He was also wearing a Hawaiian print shirt. Over all, it was a bit of an eye sore, but she could tell that he didn't care. Good for him.

"Do you have more things to bring with you?" Mal asked her.

"I've got a small trunk, but most of my stuff will stay with Crowley," she informed them.

"You called him that earlier," Zoe observed. "Why do you call Badger, Crowley?"

Kaylee shrugged. "That's just what I've always called him. I've known him most of my life. He didn't always go by Badger. He's practically family. He helped me get through some hard times."

"Well so long as you get us guaranteed jobs, you're always welcome here," Wash joked.

Kaylee laughed. "Crowley probably would've given you plenty of jobs anyway, even if you didn't take me on. He's good at telling what sort of person you are just by meeting you. He probably wouldn't have offered to let me check out your engine if he wasn't already thinking of working with you."

"Good to know," Mal said with a smile. "Now, let's go get your stuff."

Kaylee and Mal exited the ship and took the short walk back to Crowley's place. There, she led him right past the door guards, who greeted her by name, and strait to her room. She knew Mal was examining her room to figure out exactly what sort of person she was.

Her room was simple. She didn't care about the lavish furniture or carpets that Crowley enjoyed. He had, in fact, brought most of his stuff here from his mansion back in Hell, stating that he couldn't survive with out his creature comforts. She, in contrast, had painted the rock walls a light blue color. There was a grey carpet on the floor. She had a good sized bed with an emerald green comforter. There was a desk in the corner piled high with technical diagrams and books on various spacecrafts. There was a small closet to the side that held most of her clothes. Normally the door was closed, but she had forgotten and her stuff was there for everyone to see.

She didn't realize that Mal had wandered over to her bedside table where there were a few pictures of her and Jacob until he pick one up.

"Who's this?"

Kaylee froze. One of the pictures was of her and Jacob when he was eighteen. Especially now, when age was measured by the amount of dirt in your wrinkles, most people considered her to be younger than her actual age of thirty four. If she told him that it was her son, there would definitely be some questions asked about how a girl in her late twenties could have a son so old.

"That's my little brother, Jacob," she said after a moment. "He died a bit back."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to..." Mal tried to backtrack.

"It's okay," Kaylee said. "He died saving my life. I think he would be proud to go that way. I miss him, but I know that he wouldn't want me to sit here grieving, so I try to make the most of life."

"That's a good way to live," Mal said softly.

Kaylee hefted her trunk up. The trunk wasn't heavy for her, but it was bulky for her small frame. Mal offered to carry it, but she had already shown that she could pick it up and she knew that he would struggle more than her so she refused. She said a quick goodbye to Crowley and was on her way.

Back at the ship, Mal showed her to her cabin. He apologized that it wasn't what she was used to, but she assured him that it was perfect. She managed to get her trunk down the ladder and set it at the foot of her bed. She collapsed on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. This is it. Her new home.

**So? Better? I hope so.**

**I've been noticing a distinct lack in reviews for this story. I'm not asking for a review every chapter, but just a little thing to tell me what you like/don't like would be lovely. Seriously, those things motivate me to write more than anything and as I've run out of my stored chapters and am now writing on a weekly basis, that motivation is desperately needed. I promise you, this story will never be abandoned, but chapters might start coming out late if I can't find the time or motivation to write so please please please review!**


	5. The Suspicion

**Hi people and welcome to the next chapter! Ready to meet Inara? Well you're in luck! That's enough of me babbling, let's get onto the story!**

"Did yah hear, Zoe? We're gonna get a passenger on board!" Kaylee exclaimed to the first mate as they hung together in the small resting area.

Zoe chuckled at Kaylee's excitement. Kaylee had fit in well with the crew, she reflected. The young girl was exactly what the battle hardened Mal needed, and she too if she was honest with herself. Zoe enjoyed Kaylee's company immensely.

Zoe ignored Kaylee's background most of the time, but sometimes the girl would say something in "proper" English that would betray her more civilized upbringing. Zoe suspected that Kaylee was trying to slur some of her words and speak more like she and Mal to fit in better with the ship. On the other hand, Zoe knew that she was being influenced right back as she always tried to correct herself when she would catch Kaylee's barely hidden flinch at her bad grammar.

"Yes, _mei-mei_," Zoe responded. "Would Mal have invited anybody onboard if I didn't say so?"

"What's she like? Have you met her? She must be rich to be renting a shuttle," Kaylee rambled.

"I suppose so," Zoe said with another chuckle. "Mal's showing her around now. I haven't met her before, but so long as she doesn't interfere with the job, I don't see no harm."

She caught Kaylee's flinch and corrected herself. "Any."

Kaylee gave her a small smile. "I hope she's nice."

"Even if she wasn't, you'd help her become nice," Zoe assured her. "You do that to people. Always smiling."

"So I've been told," Kaylee said with a laugh. "It's certainly helped you."

"I suppose," Zoe shrugged. "It's certainly put me in a better mood for dealing with Wash."

Kaylee smirked. "You like him."

"I tolerate him," Zoe corrected.

"Admit it, ever since he shaved that mustache off, he's even become a bit cute," Kaylee teased.

"So he's not so much of an eye sore anymore," Zoe shrugged. "Doesn't mean I like him."

"I say, less than two months and you two will be dating," Kaylee predicted.

"You are out of your mind," Zoe replied.

The two women turned around as they heard footsteps coming towards where they were sitting. Mal entered first with a beautiful woman behind him.

The lady was dressed in a fine blue skirt with gold trim and a matching top that left her stomach bare. Her dark, wavy hair was pulled back and covered with a veil. She moved with a quiet confidence and her intelligent gazed scanned everything in the room.

"Zoe, Kaylee, I'd like you to meet Miss Inara, she will be renting one of the shuttles," Mal introduced.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Inara said in a smooth voice, bowing her head slightly.

Zoe had no idea who exactly Mal was going to to rent the shuttle out to, but she had trusted him to make a good decision for the ship. She hadn't been expecting a _companion, _as Inara clearly was from her clothing and mannerisms. Kaylee hadn't caught on to this fact and had moved closer to greet their new ship mate.

"Hi! I'm Kaylee, the mechanic here on Serenity."

"You are?" Inara asked intrigued. "I was not aware that there were many female mechanics."

"Kaylee's one of the best mechanics in the 'verse," Mal said, defending Kaylee quickly.

"Your crew is very close," Inara observed.

"That we are," Zoe said, stepping forward. "I'm Zoe, first mate on this ship."

Inara bowed her head again as Kaylee burst forth with questions for the companion.

"So where are you from? What's it like? How long are you going to stay? Do you like it here?"

Inara laughed. "You have many questions, clearly."

Kaylee nodded her head eagerly. Zoe was relieved that Kaylee's energy hadn't alienated Inara. In fact, Inara had moved to sit in one of the chairs in the small resting area with Kaylee beside her were she tried to answer as many of Kaylee's questions as possible.

"I'm from Sihnon where I was trained as a companion. I have worked as one for many years now."

"You're a companion?" Kaylee asked. If Zoe didn't know better, she would almost say she could detect disgust in Kaylee's voice, but there was no chance of that. Kaylee didn't care who you were, never had. That was one of the things that Zoe had loved about Kaylee.

"You do not approve of me?" Inara asked, tilting her head to the side. "You would not be the first."

Maybe Zoe hadn't been so far off the mark as she had originally thought. She knew that companions had been trained in more than just pleasure, but was the training so in depth to be able to sense the very slight hostility from a girl she had just met?

"No, your body is yours to use. I do not care what for, I just would not have chosen that path for myself," Kaylee responded.

Inara eyed the mechanic. "You are not from the rim, are you? You speak more properly."

"I'm from Persephone," Kaylee agreed. "I joined this crew to see the 'verse. Besides, I love this ship."

"I will enjoy speaking to you again," Inara said as she stood up. She turned to Mal. "Captian, should we finish the tour?"

"Right this way, Miss," Mal said, gesturing out the door. Zoe could easily detect the sarcasm in his voice so she knew that Inara had as well, but the companion did not say anything except bidding her and Kaylee farewell before leaving.

Zoe and Kaylee glanced at each other. This was turning into a very interesting crew.

* * *

"See? Just like that," Inara said, patting Kaylee's hair as she gave it one final twist.

"Ooh, thank you!" Kaylee exclaimed as she examined the hair do that Inara had done in of the the mirrors on the shuttle.

"Glad you liked it," Inara smiled. Kaylee gave a quick smile back. Inara had been inviting her over to spend time together at least once a week since she had first started renting the shuttle a month or so ago. She knew that the companion, with all of her training in psychology, suspected many things from her. She tried to fit Inara's mental picture of who she believed Kaylee to be, but it was getting more difficult not to slip up, especially when she was around the rest of the crew. She had become so use to her new family that she wouldn't pay attention to how she spoke as much and would sometimes slip into her old speech. The rest of the crew wasn't so observant as to pick up on this, but Inara was. Inara was just waiting for Kaylee to slip up, but Kaylee wasn't going to give her that advantage. If she was going to reveal anything, it would be on her own terms.

"So what was the real reason you called me here?"

Inara jumped slightly. "Wha- What?"

Kaylee smirked a little as Inara's surprise broke through her companion training. "You didn't just call me here to chat and do my hair. You want to discuss something."

"How could you detect that?" Inara wondered, her confusion breaking through just enough to let her ask that question instead of immediately denying.

"Look, Inara," Kaylee started with a sigh. "You might be trained in Companion etiquette, but my whole life has been dedicated to subterfuge. I normally have a pretty good sense of people's ulterior motives. So what is it you want?"

Inara looked at her in a new light. "As you just admitted, you have been trained. I was only wondering where and why."

"You misunderstood me," Kaylee said, shaking her head. "I never said I was trained, only that I have lived with secrets for a long time. And let me say this now, just because I am allowing you to ask me these questions does not require me to answer you fully or even at all. I would also ask for a measure of privacy such that anything that I say here stays between us. The rest of the crew know very little about my background but my openness towards them gives the illusion that I'm more open with my life than I truly am."

"A good tactic," Inara agreed. "Anything said on this ship stays between us."

"Thank you."

"I am curious about several things," Inara began, cautious of crossing the line that Kaylee had just put forth.

"You may ask," Kaylee agreed.

"The first thing is your speech. You attempt to talk like the crew aboard this ship, but you always use proper grammar, even if you use slang sometimes. I have even seen you flinch when others use improper grammar as well. Other times, you will speak more formally, betraying a higher class upbringing, especially when I am around. Clearly you are use to a more formal setting if you can slip back into that style of speech without realizing fully. Yet other times you will speak like nothing I have heard. Sometimes I swear you haven't even grown up anywhere near the known planets."

"You're good," Kaylee agreed with a small smile.

Inara waited with a patient smile until she realized that Kaylee wasn't going to elaborate. Her smile faltered. "That's it?"

"You never asked me a question," Kaylee pointed out.

Inara nodded her head at Kaylee's point. "Fine. Where are you from?"

Kaylee considered the answer carefully. "My home no longer exists, but everybody knows of it. I'm afraid that's all I wish to say on the subject. Any more and I'm afraid you would run screaming."

Inara narrowed her gaze. "Is there something I should be afraid of?"

"Only the unknown."

"A valid reason."

"Is there anything else?"

Inara considered Kaylee. "Is there any question I can ask where I would be given a full and honest answer?"

"No," Kaylee answered simply.

To Inara's credit, she didn't get mad, at least not visibly. "Fair enough. You had warned me."

"If that is all," Kaylee started, standing up. "I'll just be go-"

Kaylee paused as she heard footsteps running outside towards the direction of the shuttle. Inara was about to ask what was going on when she, too, heard the footsteps. Kaylee walked carefully to the door and looked out. She jumped back as Zoe ran in. Kaylee had never the first mate so agitated. Her eyes were wide and she was out of breath. Kaylee was especially surprised though by the fact that Zoe had just _ran_ without there seeming to be a life threatening situation. The woman was always put together.

"Zoe! What's wrong?!" Kaylee exclaimed.

Zoe panted a little as she looked around. Her eyes took in Inara, who had slowly stood up and walked over, to Kaylee, who was standing in front of her with a concerned expression.

"I need help," Zoe began.

"How can I help?" Kaylee asked immediately.

"Actually... Umm... It's kinda Inara I'm needing," Zoe said with an apologetic look on her face.

"Oh, alright," Kaylee said with her eyes cast downward. "Do you want me to go?"

"Gorram it! No!" Zoe exclaimed, realizing immediately that she had hurt Kaylee. "You need to hear this, too, but I think Inara's the one who can help."

"How can I be of assistance?" Inara asked.

"I...I..." Zoe stuttered. Kaylee placed a calming hand on the first mate's shoulder. She was becoming very concerned about Zoe. This was not normal behavior. Zoe took a shuddering breath as she took in Kaylee's comfort. "I kissed Wash."

Kaylee whooped for joy and gave Zoe a large hug. She had been supporting that partnership since she had first seen the two together. The little smiles that Zoe tried to hide, the way Wash would always look at Zoe after a joke to see if she appreciated it, those two were just meant to be together.

Zoe glared at Kaylee. "This is not a good thing. I need to fix this!"

"What's there to fix?" Kaylee questioned, still giddy. "This is perfect!"

"No, it's not!" Zoe insisted. "What will the Captain say? Besides, I don't even like him."

The last part was added as more of an afterthought and Kaylee could tell that Zoe didn't really mean it, even if the first mate didn't realize that herself.

"Why don't we all sit?" Inara suggested. At the companion's calming words, they all moved over to sit on the couches. Inara poured warm tea for all of them. Zoe immediately grabbed hers and took a large gulp.

"Now Zoe," Inara began. "Can you tell us what happened?"

"We were both up on the bridge," Zoe told. "He was showing me some of the finer aspects of piloting. I was leaning over his chair when he cracked a joke. I can't remember what it was or even if it was funny, but he turned to look at me and I stopped thinking. His face was so close to mine and his eyes were full of laughter. I don't know why, but I leaned forward and kissed him. I pulled back and he was just as stunned as I was. I ran out of there and didn't look back. What have I done?"

Zoe out her head in her hands and Kaylee wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"Nothing. You have done nothing wrong and have nothing to regret," Kaylee said immediately. Zoe looked at Inara for a different opinion.

"I agree with Kaylee," Inara said, nodding. "I have only been aboard this ship for a month, but I can already see the unique relationship you and Wash share."

"Go on! Give it a go!" Kaylee encouraged.

"How? I don't know what to say or how to act!" Zoe asked, distressed.

"Have you never been in a relationship before?" Kaylee asked.

"Nothing lasting," Zoe admitted. "And nothing since..."

She didn't need to finish her sentence. Both Kaylee and Inara knew that she was talking of the unification war.

"Honestly, just be yourself. And yes, I know how hard that sounds, but I'm sure that Wash will be his usual dorky self, so just go with the flow," Kaylee advised.

"Let Wash find you," Inara said. "I can tell that you're the type of woman that would commit to the relationship wholeheartedly. If he is as dedicated to making this work as you will be, let him come to you. If he's too shy, do you really want to be with a man too scared to talk to his partner?"

"Thank you," Zoe said with a sigh of relief. "I knew it was a good idea to come here."

There were footsteps outside of the shuttle once more and Mal poked his head through the door.

"Hey Zoe, Wash is lookin' for yah. I don't know what it's about, but it sounded urgent."

"Yes, Sir," Zoe responded immediately and the vulnerable Zoe that Kaylee and Inara had seen just a moment ago was gone. "If you see him again, tell him I'm at the kitchen."

Mal gave a short nod and exited. Zoe's confident demeanor immediately dropped as she turned to look at Kaylee and Inara once more.

"Are you sure I can do this? What if I screw up?"

"Remember, it's not your responsibility here," Inara reminded her. "Let Wash struggle through asking the question."

"Who knows?" Kaylee added. "It will probably give you a few good laughs later so remember every bit."

Zoe nodded once more and left the room. Inara and Kaylee looked at each other. Kaylee giggled and Inara gave a sly smirk. Both girls hurried from the room to get the best view.

**So the next couple chapters are going to be similar to this one where it's covering the events leading to the first episode of Firefly. I promise, I haven't forgotten about the Supernatural aspect of this, but there are a lot of characters and events happening soon so the main plot got shoved aside a bit for introductions, but it's coming back!**

**On another note, I am extremely disappointed with the amount of reviews for this story. One? That's it?! I give you guys nice, long chapters and nobody can give me the smallest amount of feedback? This is me getting on my knees and begging. Please please please give me some feedback here!**


	6. The Wedding

**Umm... Hi. So yeah, I'm late. The chapter was actually finished last night, but I was also pretty sick so I fell asleep before I could actually post it. I had my biggest response on this story on the last chapter so thank you everybody! Big thanks to drone84 and for favoriting and following and to Annie for reviewing! I'd like to dedicate this chapter to my best friend, Moe, who this past weekend went and read all of my stories. She writes on archive of our own under the name KatsatheGraceling, so if you like Sherlock and James Bond, go check her out! There are a bunch of flashbacks in this chapter marked by _italics_. Enjoy!**

Crowley's base was a mess from wedding preparations. Kaylee was beyond excited. Wash and Zoe were finally getting married today.

* * *

_Zoe and Wash had gathered everybody in the kitchen. Everybody was looking around at the others trying to figure out what was going on. Jayne, the newest addition to the crew, was leaning back in his chair with his arms folded across his chest. Kaylee and Inara were sitting next to each other, whispering and wondering what this was about. Inara though that Zoe was pregnant while Kaylee believed it was an engagement. Mal was standing off to one side, his face neutral. While he liked everybody in the crew, he didn't approve of Zoe and Wash's relationship, mainly because he didn't see himself as first in Zoe's eyes anymore._

_"We have something to tell y'all," Zoe began._

_"We're getting married!" Wash finished._

_Kaylee jumped up from the table and pointed at Inara. "I knew it! You owe me one!"_

_Inara pulled a face at her as Zoe and Wash laughed._

_"Well congratulations and all that stuff," Jayne grumbled._

_Kaylee enveloped Zoe in a hug. "I called it! I knew you two would end up together!"_

_"Yes, you're quite the little oracle, mei-mei," Zoe said with a smile. "I was wondering something else as well. We're not planning anything big, but I was wondering if you'd be my maid-of-honor?"_

_"Me?" Kaylee asked shocked. She knew that they had become close over the past few months aboard Serenity, but to be asked this honor? "Of course!"_

_"May your future together be happy," Inara said with a nod towards Wash and hug for Zoe._

_Everybody turned to the last person in the room who hadn't spoken and offered their congratulations. Mal was observing the engaged couple carefully, keeping his neutral face intact._

_"Married, huh?" He asked._

_"Sorry, Mal, I probably shoulda asked you first if marriage was okay on your ship, but I'd give all this up if Zoe'd still marry me," Wash said, earning him a small smile from Zoe._

_"Mal, this was my choice as much as his," Zoe said quietly._

_Mal's face cleared immediately and a bright smile showed through. "Jeez, you'd think I was giving you the boot. 'Course you're okay here."_

_Zoe and Wash smiled in relief and began talking to Kaylee once again. Only Inara saw the pained expression on the Captain's face as he turned and left the room._

* * *

Kaylee turned a corner in the base and had to move quickly out of the way as somebody ran past her. Zoe and Wash had just been expecting something small at some out of the way church, but Zoe had confided in Inara and Kaylee one night that she wished for an old fashioned wedding. A couple of waves to Crowley later and he had set up a private ceremony in a little chapel a little ways from the base. He then offered to host reception at the base itself.

* * *

_"Hey, Crowley. What's up?" Kaylee asked with a grin when the demon's face popped up on her screen. It had been a month since Serenity had been in range of Persephone to send a wave. While Crowley could technically pop over any time he wished, they never wanted to risk him being caught on the ship._

_"It's been 300 years since that phrase and you still can't let it drop, can you, Amy?" Crowley complained, rolling his eyes._

_"It's been 50 years and you still can't let my name drop, can you, Crowley?" Kaylee mocked._

_"Touché," Crowley conceded. "So what's the wave about?"_

_"What, I can't call my favorite demon?" Kaylee asked with a mock pout._

_Crowley eyed her. "For anybody else, maybe, but with that lip sticking out like that, I know you want something."_

_Kaylee laughed. "Alright, I did want to ask a favor."_

_Crowley heaved a fake sigh. "And getting food for you isn't enough?"_

_Kaylee stuck her tongue out. "Actually, I was wondering what you know about weddings."_

_That subject change startled Crowley for a moment. "Amy, why didn't you tell me you met someone?"_

_Kaylee shuddered. "Ugh, no. You know I'm never getting into a relationship again. Only good thing that came out of my last one was Jacob. It's actually Zoe and Wash."_

_"So the love birds finally made it official," Crowley said with a smirk. "When's the date?"_

_"They don't know yet. Their hoping to actually have it on a planet in a real church and stuff, even though neither is very religious. I was hoping you could help."_

_Crowley raised an eyebrow. "You want me to help with a church?"_

_"Okay, that sounds a bit offensive when you put it that way," Kaylee admitted._

_"You don't say," Crowley muttered before sighing. "But, yes, I'll help. There's a little place around the corner from here actually. Very nice and quiet. I'll book something and you can have the reception here."_

_"Really?" Kaylee asked, surprised. Crowley had, for some reason, put a ballroom in the base, but it had never been used. At least, not for parties. Kaylee went in their all the time to do martial arts training._

_"Why not?" Crowley shrugged. "More than one person should get some use out of the room._

_"You're the best Crowley!" Kaylee exclaimed._

_"Of course I am," Crowley said with a smirk. "Would sometime next month work? That way it will coincide with your visit to Jacob and you don't randomly disappear from the ship while it's in the middle of space."_

_"Good idea," Kaylee said. "I'll let Zoe know. Thanks again!"_

* * *

Kaylee continued walking through the base. Without really meaning to, she had ended up in the ballroom, but it was completely changed from how she normally had it. All of her training equipment had been moved to another room. There were round tables with white tablecloths around the edge of the room, leaving the middle clear for dancing. She walked to the middle and slowly started to dance to a tune in her own head, imagining what her own wedding would've been like. She had never had a wedding before.

Jacob had been a complete accident, but a welcome one that she wouldn't change for the world. She had been dating a guy at the hospital she worked at. His name was David McLean. He was one of the sweetest guys she had ever met. He had brown hair and warm, brown eyes. She could feel herself falling for him a bit every day. She had never meant for more to happen than just dating and maybe marriage eventually. When she had discovered that she was pregnant, she knew that she wouldn't be able to keep her secret anymore as it would be obvious in the child.

* * *

_"David?" Amy asked hesitantly._

_Her boyfriend was sitting and reading in the living room of the house they shared. They had moved in together a couple months ago and Amy was adoring living together. She had never been as close to a human as she was now. The only slightly problematic thing was trying to keep her diet hidden, but if all went well in the next few minutes, that shouldn't be an issue anymore._

_When David heard her voice, he shut the book and beckoned her over. She sat down next to him on the love seat and he took her hand in his. "What's the matter, love?"_

_"I'm pregnant," Amy said quickly, getting it over with._

_David froze. Amy watched his eyes carefully. Emotions ran through them so quickly that she couldn't tell, but they settled on one: complete joy._

_"Oh my gosh, Amy. That's incredible!" He exclaimed. Amy gave a relieved laugh and sank into his embrace. Round one was successful._

_"Oh goodness. We're going to need to start preparing immediately. What are we going to tell my family? Should we get married?"_

_David continued rambling but Amy's mind had stopped on one question. Should we get married?_

_"Married?" Amy choked._

_David pause and look over at her before sprinting to the kitchen. He came back less than a minute later with something in his hand. He came and knelt before Amy who was still seated on the love seat._

_"I've been meaning to do this for a while," David began awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. "I've had this for a long time, but I just never felt that it was a good time. But now is perfect."_

_His brown eyes slowly sought out Amy's. He opened the box in his hand to reveal a perfect golden band with three small diamonds. "Amy Pond, will you marry me?"_

_Amy squealed and tackled him in a hug which quickly turned into a passionate kiss. When they took a break for air, David laughed and pulled them back up onto the love seat._

_"I take it it's a yes?"_

_Amy sobered up quickly. In her relief of David taking the baby news so well and her ecstasy with the proposal, she had forgotten the second part of what she meant to tell him._

_"Umm, can my answer wait a minute?" She asked hesitantly. David's eyes immediately filled with hurt and she felt terrible. So she quickly backtracked. "I would love to marry you, David. Of course I would!"_

_"Then what's the problem?" David asked._

_"There's something you need to know abut me," Amy began._

_"What is it, love?"_

_"Oh this is going to sound terrible," Amy muttered before steeling herself. "Okay, you know all the legendary creatures? Vampires, werewolves, djinn?"_

_"Yeah," David answered, confused as to where this was going._

_"They aren't just myths, they're real."_

_David had enough sense to not laugh. He could see that she was being completely serious but, he was completely confused at the same time._

_"Amy, please tell me your just having a laugh," he said slowly._

_"David, I'm not joking. I'm a part of them," she admitted._

_"Amy, what are you trying to say?" He asked, frustrated._

_Amy sighed. She took both of her boyfriend's hands in her own and looked him strait in the eye. "David, I'm not human."_

_David wheeled back from her in shock, tripping over the corner of the couch and ending up on the floor._

_"Please don't be scared!" Amy begged. "I would never hurt you!"_

_"Wh... What are you?" David stuttered._

_"I'm a Kitsune," Amy explained gently. "We are not actually too different from humans, unlike some other species. The biggest difference is our diet."_

_At that she looked cautiously at David who was watching her with a guarded expression. "Which is...?"_

_"Myspeciesneedsthechemicalsfromthehumanpituitaryglandtosurvive," Amy said in one big rush._

_David gave her a confused look. "Huh?"_

_Amy took a deep breath and slowed down. "We eat the human pituitary glands. Many of my kind prefer fresh meat, but I value human life. That's why I work in the morgue at the hospital. I take what I need so nobody must be harmed."_

_David took a moment to consider this. "You look human."_

_Amy nearly burst out laughing. That was the last question she had expected after admitting to her diet._

_"We hide ourselves pretty well, not that there are many differences in the first place."_

_She held out her hand and watched David's eyes widen as her claws slowly extended from her hand._

_"This is the main physical feature that's different," she explained. "Sometimes when we are feeding or feel threatened, our eyes will flash yellow. We are naturally very fast and strong. All of this helps with the hunt."_

_David kept examining her carefully, making Amy squirm under his gaze. He slowly stood up and walked to where the ring box was sitting, forgotten on the couch. Amy resolved herself for him to walk out on her and their life together. She was utterly surprised when he sat next to her and opened the box once again._

_"Amy Pond. I don't know as much about you as I thought I did, but you still carry my child and I love you. Will you marry me?"_

* * *

Kaylee blinked her eyes against the tears that threatened to spill out of her eyes. David had died three months later in a car accident coming home from work. He had never gotten to meet Jacob. Her broken heart had harden against anyone ever entering her life from a relationship standpoint. After time, she had begun looking at any relationship she could've had with a tinge of disgust. Why would she put herself through that misery again? Perhaps that's why she felt the need to help others in their relationships, so they didn't go through her heartbreak.

She didn't realize that she had stopped dancing until applause reached her. She spun around to see Crowley standing in a corner, watching her.

"Thinking of weddings again, darling?" He asked softly.

Even though it was phrased as a simple question, Kaylee knew that he was asking if she was thinking of David.

"I'm okay," she said quietly. "I shouldn't be thinking of the past on a day like this."

"That's why I came looking for you, actually. Zoe's looking for you."

Kaylee brightened at the thought of the bride to be. "Is she in her room?"

"With the Companion," Crowley nodded and Kaylee hurried off.

* * *

The ceremony was beautiful. It was only the crew there along with a couple dozen people from Crowley's base. The crew had taken quite a few jobs there over the past months and so had become familiar with many of the people that worked there.

Crowley obviously didn't go to the wedding in the church, but he joined them for the reception.

Everything went off without a hitch. Kaylee sighed in delight as she watched Zoe and Wash sway together in the middle of the dance floor. People stood around the edge of the room, chatting, as music played from the speakers hidden around the room. Her guard was down, so it probably shouldn't have surprised her that someone had managed to sneak up behind her.

"Amy Pond"

It was only her five centuries of pretending to be somebody else that kept her from jumping like a cornered rabbit, although she did jump a bit at the voice. Behind her was a man in a brown trench coat. He had dark hair and stubble littered his chin.

"I'm sorry. You must have the wrong person," Kaylee lied smoothly.

"No, I do not," the man stated confidently. "My name is Castiel."

Kaylee breathed a little sigh of relief. She recognized the name Castiel from the stories Crowley had told her about the Winchesters, but she had never actually met the famous angel.

"What is it you want, angel?" Kaylee asked, letting him know that she recognized him.

Castiel tilted his head a bit at the acknowledgement. "I wished to inform you that you will have an important guest aboard your vessel soon."

Kaylee snorted. "Guest? Mal doesn't bring passengers. "

"He will," Castiel assured her. "There is one in particular, a girl, who must be protected at all costs."

"Why?" Kaylee asked. Perhaps it wasn't smart to question an angel, but she wasn't going to just follow orders blindly.

"I am afraid that I cannot tell you at this point. You will notice that this girl is very special as soon as you meet her. Protect her."

At these words, her gaze was diverted slightly against her will. When she was able to refocuses, she realize Castiel was gone.

**Phew, lots of things happening in that chapter! I know I didn't spend a lot of time on Jayne, but I just didn't feel like he and Kaylee would ever be that close. And we're finally getting back into some Supernatural stuff! Can anybody guess who the girl is(okay, that's obvious) or why she's so important?**

**I'm going out of town this weekend so there won't be a post on Sunday. If I get enough written on the plane, I might post a second chapter the Wednesday after. I'm always susceptible to reviews as bribes:P**

**Again, sorry about the lateness. I'll be back in a couple weeks!**


	7. The Gathering

**I'm back! I'd like to thank Flaca514 and Wood3h for following, KingofHell16 and DarkLord0012 for favoriting, and max artemis for doing both:) Also, BIG thank you to my beta Katsa-the-graceling for looking over everything and helping me with some ideas. Just saying, if you have anything in particular you'd like to see, let me know and I'll try to work it in! Now on to the story:D**

"So that's been my year," Kaylee finished. Jacob smiled at her.

"Sounds like you've been busy."

"It's been incredible! I love my crew and the adventures we have. Nothing ever goes according to plan."

"I can tell," Jacob smirked. "How you remember all of that is beyond me."

"I don't want to forget one second, but I'm afraid a perfect memory doesn't come with immortality," Kaylee lamented.

"Why don't you keep a journal or something?" Jacob suggested. "That way during your visits you can tell me everything."

"That sounds like a great idea," Kaylee grinned.

Mother and son looked up as Crowley entered the room.

"Is it that time already?" Kaylee sighed.

"I'm afraid so, Amy," Crowley grimaced. "Besides, people are going to start looking for you topside if you don't show up soon. I know at least Zoe wants to say goodbye before they go on their honeymoon."

"I guess I need to be going," Kaylee said while standing up. She gave her son one last hug.

"Don't forget about the journal," Jacob said with a grin.

"Got it," Kaylee replied while grabbing onto Crowley. She felt the familiar disorientation of teleportation and suddenly, she was back in her room at the base. And just in the nick of time, too, as Zoe burst through the door.

"Kaylee! Where have you been? I've been looking for you!"

Kaylee groaned inwardly. This was just what she had been hoping to avoid. "Sorry, Zoe. I was just going over some personal things."

"Well come on," Zoe said, impatiently. "We're just about to go."

She hooked onto Kaylee's arm and dragged her through the base onto the surface. There, the rest of the crew was waiting for her to say their goodbyes to Zoe and Wash for their honeymoon that had been Kaylee's wedding gift. She had arranged a private cabin on the nicer part of Persephone. Since she figured neither Zoe nor Wash were the types to go on a walk through the park, she made sure that there were some other things nearby such as an aviation museum for Wash and a gun range for Zoe, that is, if they ever chose to come out of the bedroom.

"Gorram it, girl, where have you been?" Jayne grumbled as Kaylee and Zoe arrived.

"None of your business," she snapped at the mercenary. If it had been any other crew member, she might have made an effort to be polite, but she had discovered fairly quickly that Jayne just didn't care one way or another.

"Cool it," Mal ordered. "I don't need no fightin' here."

Hugs went around and everybody said their farewells. The couple may only be leaving for a couple weeks, but to the crew, it was like cutting off a limb. After Zoe and Wash flew off, the crew stood around silently.

"Well, Captain, what are we gonna do now?" Kaylee asked, breaking the silence.

"We wait," Mal answered shortly.

'Can't wait to see how long that lasts," Kaylee thought sarcastically.

* * *

And Kaylee was right. Less than two days and practically everybody was raving to go. Personally, she was content to hang with Crowley and work on a few of his ships and Inara had a few clients to attend to, but Jayne, and especially Mal, were ready to go. If it weren't for the fact that they didn't have a pilot, they would've been out of there a week ago.

For Kaylee, this was just giving her time to muse over what Castiel had said. She had told Crowley almost immediately. He had rolled his eyes.

"I wouldn't want you getting mixed up in angel business, but since he's sought you out, it doesn't look like you have much of a choice. At least Baby in a Trench Coat is one of the angels you can, mostly, trust."

Well didn't that fill her with confidence. She wasn't even sure when they were going to be taking guests aboard Serenity again. She was also wondering if it may be time to start revealing a little about who she was to the crew since she wasn't sure just what sort of trouble she may be getting in to. Just the fact that she was considering this option showed how close she had gotten to the others on the ship. Then again, it may just be so she could avoid any awkward questions later. For now, she would keep her secret.

"Gorram it! I can't do this no longer!" Mal moaned as he paced around the room. Inara and Kaylee, both sitting on the couch, smirked at each other.

"We coulda taken that wreckage that Crowley offered us," Kaylee suggested.

"The one with the stamped goods and without a decent pilot? No thanks," Mal snorted.

"Suit yourself," Kaylee shrugged.

"I'm just wantin' some action," Jayne grunted. His face lit up as he realized the double meaning of his words. "Either type."

Kaylee made a face and Inara shook her head.

"I would also like to be off soon," Inara commented. "I had forgotten how dull staying on one planet could be."

"How about planning our next course, Mal? That way you'd have something to do," Kaylee said.

"Well, the only job that Crowley has is _Yu Bun Duh_, I say we go look for work somewhere else. Maybe fly over to Boros and see is Richie has any jobs," Mal pondered. "Could even take a few passengers along the way to scrounge up some pay."

Kaylee's breath caught in her throat. Passengers? All ready? Looks like Castiel was right in knowing that Mal would be taking on passengers. She would need to be on the look out for this girl he had mentioned.

"Really? Since when?" Kaylee squealed, realizing that she had to keep up with her people-loving charade. If it had been any other time, she would've genuinely loved having new people on board, but she was terrified of this mission the angel had given her.

"Since now. And you'll be in charge of gettin' them to come on board. The day Zoe and Wash get back, we'll go get Serenity up and running again. We'll leave that night."

* * *

Honestly, Mal's reasoning for sending her out to collect passengers was not without base. Of all the crew, she was the most friendly towards complete strangers but still a good judge in character. She had put a lawn chair outside and was lounging in it with a rainbow parasol. The parasol had been a gift from Inara on her birthday, the date of which the companion had somehow weaseled out of her. She had seen so many different people running about their business. There had only been a couple even vaguely interested in hitching a ride so far, but she was still fairly confident that she could find a few.

Just as she was thinking this, she saw a darker skinned man with bushy, gray hair walking while pulling a cart behind him. From his clothes, she could tell that he was some sort of missionary or Shepherd, as they liked to call priest now a days. What really caught her attention, though, was that he was not examining the destinations, but the ships themselves.

"You're gonna come with us," Kaylee called out confidently.

The man looked startled. "Excuse me?"

"You like ships. You don't seem to be looking at the destinations. What you care about are the ships, and mine's the best," Kaylee said with a smile.

"She don't look like much," the man observed, examining the ship in front of him.

"She's a diamond in the rough," Kaylee replied. "I just redid the engines and everything. Have you ever sailed in a Firefly?"

"Long before you were crawling," the man said. Kaylee had to smirk internally at his assumption. "Not an aught three, though. Didn't have the extenders, tended to shake."

"Yeah, the one improvement they made to these ships. When they changed my- the original design, they took out a lot of good stuff that shoulda stayed in," Kaylee lamented, cursing herself for her slip up, although it didn't seem like the man had noticed. "So how come you don't care where you're going?"

"'Cause how you get there is the worthier part," the man said with a secret smile.

"Yep, definitely a Shepherd," Kaylee announced.

"That obvious, huh?" The Shepherd asked, looking embarrassed. "Yes, I'm a Shepherd from Southdown Abbey. Book, I'm called Book. Been out of the world for a spell. Like to walk it a while, maybe bring the word to them as need it told."

Kaylee hoped that there wouldn't be any problems between this man and the Captain. She wasn't particularly religious herself, even though she knew that there was a God out there somewhere. Somehow, the current Christians had nulled the part in the Winchester Gospels that said that God had ran away so they kept putting their faith in him.

"Well, I'm Kaylee. This is Serenity, and she's the smoothest ride from here to Boros for anyone who can pay," she paused, worried that she might have been a bit premature. "Can you pay, or…?"

Book gave a small chuckle. "Well, I've got a little cash, and, uh…"

He brought out a small wooden box and opened the lid. Inside was a deep red strawberry. If she had been human, just the sight probably would've made her mouth water, but only her normal food source brought the enjoyment that most humans found in sugar and sweetness and she wasn't due for another week. She played it off anyway.

"Dude, you've got yourself a spot."

_Dammit._ Her visit to Jacob had really screwed up her speech more than normal as the Shepherd gave her an odd look. They didn't even use the word 'dude' anymore.

"I mean, welcome aboard."

She quickly helped Book take his things to his room and was quickly back outside to hopefully get some more passengers.

The next person that approached her was not as friendly as the Shepherd. The young man was wearing a dark suit with small, round glasses that she doubted were of any use at all.

"Excuse me, miss, how much would it be if I were to purchase passage and bring a crate with me?" the man asked stiffly.

Kaylee did a quick calculation in her head and rattled off a number to the man based on what she thought Mal might ask. She didn't care for his shifty personality or his formal tone. She was a bit nervous that as soon as he figured out what they really did on the ship, he would be off to rat them out to the alliance without a second thought. Yet, there was something about him. He was nervous, however much he tried to play it off. It was almost like he was running. While she didn't want to purposely bring trouble onto the ship, especially not if this girl Castiel had mentioned was still to come, if the man was in trouble, they were actually a good ship for evading the law.

"What's your name?" Kaylee asked.

"Simon," the man said, not offering a second name.

"Well, I'm Kaylee. Welcome aboard Serenity."

"Thank you," Simon said. "Do you have someone who can pick up the package?"

"Sure thing. Jayne!" Kaylee yelled back into the cargo hold, starling Simon.

"Whadayah want!" Jayne shouted back, coming into view on one of the catwalks.

"Can you take the mule to go get this man's cargo?"

"Why do I have to be the one to do it?" he complained.

"Because Mal's talkin' to Crowley and I have to stay here. Now get your lazy butt out of here!"

With a bit more grumbling, Jayne complied. The minute the mule left, Kaylee turned to Simon and apologized.

"Sorry about him. He's rough, but he won't do anything to upset the Captain, at least not yet, so your cargo is safe."

"It's quite all right. Your Captain must be a great man to keep a brute like him in line," Simon observed.

"Yep. Mal's great," Kaylee said with a smile.

"What is his full name? Perhaps I have heard of him."

"I doubt it," Kaylee said with a laugh. "But it's Malcolm Reynolds, Captain of Serenity here."

"An interesting name, considering it was the location the worst battle in the Unification War," Simon said.

"I can tell that your high end and most likely supported unification, but do me a favor and don't mention that war at all in front of the Captain or Zoe, our first mate."

"No war talk. Got it," Simon said with a small smile, finally breaking his stiff mask. They continued talking for a minute before Kaylee needed to turn around to address another potential passenger and Jayne returned with Simon's crate.

This passenger was a lot easier for Kaylee as he was just a typical traveler wanting passage. She wasn't particularly paying attention to him as she accepted his money. She was too busy watching Simon's crate be loaded on board.

"Welcome aboard, Mr…" she began, then realized that she was so distracted, she had forgotten to ask his name.

"Dobson," the man answered, not looking too offended.

"Dobson!" she covered quickly.

"Thank you," he said before entering.

On the other side of the ramp, Jayne was unloading Simon's crate.

"Please be careful with that!" Simon called.

"Mal, this is Simon. Simon, this is our Captain," Kaylee introduced as Mal walked up the ramp.

"Captain Reynolds," Simon acknowledged with a nod.

"Welcome aboard," Mal said formally before turning to Kaylee. "Is this all we got?"

She gave a little nod and smile. She continued to be on lookout while Mal and Jayne. A large smile spread over her face as a hover car pulled up and dropped two people off. Kaylee ran out quickly and jumped on Zoe, enveloping her in a big hug.

"Nice to see you too, _mei-mei_," Zoe said with a laugh, disentangling herself from Kaylee's arms.

"It's great to see you two!" she exclaimed.

"It was only two weeks," Wash said with a laugh as Kaylee gave him a hug as well.

"Try being around a grounded Mal for two weeks," Kaylee complained. "Believe me, it would feel longer to you, too."

Both Zoe and Wash laughed.

"Well, I've got to go back to the bridge," Wash said. "Inara's gonna be here soon and I have to help dock her."

He hurried away and Zoe went to go greet Mal. Kaylee looked over the assembled crew and guest in the cargo bay. They would leave in a few short minutes and not one girl like Castiel had said. Maybe this was the wrong trip and she would come later. That had to be it.

"We got a full house, Captain," Zoe called down from the catwalk.

"Kaylee, I'm locking up," Mal called to her.

Kaylee took one last look outside before grabbing her chair and hurrying inside while the doors closed. "All aboard."

**What did you guys think? We're finally in the tv show! Yes, I know I messed with the timelines a bit, but this just fit the best. Any guesses about River? What about who's going to find out first, because I know who it's going to be! As always, Follow/Favorite and, of course, Review!**


	8. The Confrontation

**Hello everybody and welcome to the next chapter! Before we begin, I'd like to thank Madman with a Warehouse and Barrel-of-fun for following and Follower of Mania for both favoriting and following:) And also BIG thank you to my beta, KatsatheGraceling, who has been my biggest supporter. Love you, Moe! Another thing I want to note before getting started is that this chapter dives kind of deep into religion. I want to make something clear, nothing in here reflects my own personal views, only how I believe that Supernatural would come into play in this universe. And honestly, if you get offended easily over religious things, I think you need to find a different fandom. Now on to the story!**

After Mal gave his "Welcome aboard" speech, all of the new passengers went down to the hull to get any personal belongings they would need for the trip. Kaylee stood on the catwalk with Mal, observing the chaos. Book came up to her and passed her a small box- the strawberry- along with a bag of fresh produce that they would use to cook dinner together later. She grinned at him and he gave a small nod.

"Ah, the Ambassador graces us with her presence," Mal announced, causing Kaylee to spin around with a grin on her face.

"Hello, Mal," Inara greeted. "I see we have some new faces."

"And you've finally decided to come out of the ship and meet 'em," Kaylee said with a smile, looping her arm through Inara's and leading her over to the Shepherd. "Inara, this is Shepherd Book."

Kaylee could tell that Inara was a bit startled, but hid her surprise well. "I'd have to say this is the first time we've had a preacher on board."

"Well, I wasn't expecting to see a state official, either, Ambassador," Book greeted, taking Inara's hand.

Mal started to laugh and Kaylee and Inara glared at him.

"I'm missing something funny," Book said slowly, looking between the three crew members.

"Ambassador is Mal's way of saying-" Inara paused briefly at the audible slap of skin as Kaylee slammed her hand over Mal's mouth. "Companion."

"Gorram it, Kaylee," Mal grunted and shoved the smaller girl off of him. He turned to look at Book. "She's a whore, Shepherd."

"Mal!" Kaylee said in a reproachful tone. "Be nice!"

"How's business?" Mal asked, ignoring Kaylee. She rolled her eyes. Whenever Mal was around the Companion, he lost his head. While she didn't approve much of Inara's occupation either, at least she was civil. Plus, she had attempted to learn more about Inara personally, than trying to judge her solely on her job. Now, she could claim to know Inara best, probably out of everybody on the shuttle. Mal couldn't claim to having one conversation with her that didn't end in a fight, normally Mal's fault and normally about her job.

"None of yours," Inara replied quickly with a dangerous smile.

"She's pretty much our ambassador," Mal said, turning to Book, who was looking uncomfortable. "There's plenty of planets won't even let you dock without a decent Companion."

With fake concern, Mal suddenly looked between Inara and the Shepherd. "This… This won't be a problem for you, is it, Shepherd?"

"Well, I… I certainly…" Book hesitated.

"It's all right," Inara said with an understanding smile. "I mostly keep to myself."

She turned around and started to leave while Kaylee traveled behind, but she couldn't resist one last jab at Mal. "When I'm not whoring."

"Don't you want to meet the rest of the bunch?" Mal asked, fake friendship written on his face this time.

Inara paused on the stairs. "Why don't you make sure they want to meet me first?"

_Now _Mal started to look apologetic. Kaylee lingered a bit longer than she might have, long enough for Mal to glance at her. She shook her head, letting him know just how out of line he had been before following Inara back to her ship.

* * *

Later, Kaylee made her way to the kitchen with a crate holding the bag of vegetables and the box containing the sole strawberry. She put the crate down and carefully placed the strawberry in the back of the small fridge-like appliance they had. She would save it for somebody else, since she didn't care for it. None of the boys ever went into the kitchen so she didn't have to worry about them finding it. Zoe and Inara would most likely leave the box alone as it was not theirs.

She heard Shepherd Book enter the kitchen but did not acknowledge him until he was only a few feet away, although still did not turn around, sorting and cleaning the fresh food.

"I'm sorry about Mal," she said. She heard him jump slightly. "He was once a religious man, but after the war, he lost all faith. He will do anything to make you uncomfortable, I'm sorry to say. Just ignore him. We all do when he gets into a mood about a touchy subject, like you saw with Inara. She is a kind woman. You don't need to judge her based on her occupation."

"I'm afraid that I was taken by surprise," Book admitted. "I should not judge others before I have the chance to meet them, however poorly first impressions went."

"And that includes the Captain," Kaylee added.

"It's sad to see a man turn from God," the Shepherd sighed. Kaylee finally turned around to look at him.

"It's hard to put your faith in a being that seems to have abandoned you," she said after a moment.

"Yet, part of faith is believing that He will always remember you," Book countered.

There was another pause as they observed each other before Book cleared his throat. "If you do not mind me asking, are you a religious person?"

Kaylee turned back to the vegetables and started cutting them as she considered her answer. "I suppose you could say that I believe, but I don't have faith, if that makes sense."

"How so?" Book asked, coming beside her and beginning work on the herbs.

"How much do you know of the origins of your bible?" she asked instead.

Book laughed slightly. "I suppose a bit more than most."

"There are three sections of the most widely accepted Christian bible," Kaylee lectured, even though the Shepherd already knew this. He waited patiently for her to get to her point. "The old testament, the new testament, and the Winchester gospels. All three were written on Earth. The old testament was not written originally, but rather transferred by word of mouth by the Israelites. It was not written down until much later. The new testament came way later, dealing with Christ and the coming of the Messiah. And centuries after that came the Winchester gospels. The gospels were originally written by a man under the pseudonym, Carver Edlund, in the early 2000's, so the gospels say. The man claimed to be a prophet who was sent dreams by God. However, he did not realize this and published the books as a series, Supernatural. The series was discontinued, but was later brought back. However, Edlund disappeared. The series was finished anonymously, but it is thought that it was most likely Edlund still, as the writing styles were so similar. It wasn't until later still, when the largest church reformation since the Protestant Reformation, began that a pope found the Supernatural series. Through extensive research, the man found that all of the events in the series correlated with actual events that occurred during that time period. Because of the scientifically supported events that occurred in the series, the Pope moved for the book to be considered as holy material. However, many of the events that occurred in the book were taken out. The Winchester brothers dealt with so much more than just the angels and demons that the gospel currently mentions. They fought all sorts of monsters. You asked what I believed in. I believe that the Winchester gospels are the truth, but not the watered down version that is printed now. Part of that is believing that God ran away during the apocalypse. So you see, I believe, but I don't have faith."

They spent several minutes in silence as Book sorted through all of the information she had dumped on him.

"You know more than I would've thought about the bible," Book finally said.

"I spent years researching it," Kaylee admitted, which was technically true since for a few years, she had gone around and tracked her way through the Supernatural series, long after the Winchesters were dead, of course, so she wouldn't be discovered. She had met with some eye witnesses, many of whom were just kids at the time, but it was still fascinating to hear their perspective.

"I can tell," Book said with a bit of a laugh as he placed the first tray of seasoned tomatoes into their oven. "I have never read the original Winchester gospels, although I have always wanted to."

"Well if we ever see each other again, you need to come with me back to Persephone. My friend, Crowley, has the complete collection," Kaylee offered.

"That's an unfortunate name," Book observed.

"Why?"

"That's the name of the King of Hell in the Winchester gospels. I would've thought you'd have picked up on that," Book said in confusion.

Kaylee laughed. "The guy did end up mostly good in the end. Well, as good as a demon could ever get."

As they finished up the food, the rest of the crew and passengers began to file into the dining area. Everybody was soon seated and the food was being passed around along with many compliments for the cooks.

"Captain, you mind if I say grace?" Book asked.

"Only if you say it out loud," Mal replied and kept eating.

And that was it, the good mood was broken. Book glanced at Kaylee, remembering their conversation from earlier concerning that Captain. She grimaced at him and motioned that he go ahead and do what he wished. He lowered his head and several others followed him. Soon the clattering of cutlery began, but the awkward silence would not leave.

"You're a doctor, right?" Kaylee asked Simon, hoping to bring some conversation back.

Simon looked startled at being addressed. "Oh. Um, yes. Yes, I was a trauma surgeon on Osiris, in Capital City."

"Long way from here," Mal observed. Kaylee could see his dislike for the Alliance bubbling beneath the surface.

"You seem so young. To be a doctor," Kaylee cut in quickly before Mal could offend anybody.

"Yeah," Simon said uncomfortably. "You're pretty young to be a ship's mechanic."

"I'm just good with machines," Kaylee shrugged. "But being a _trauma surgeon_? That's saving lives everyday."

"Little Kaylee here just wishes you was a gynecologist," Jayne said with a laugh.

"And Jayne wishes you were a proctologist," Kaylee shot back. Everybody at the table looked at her in shock. She shrugged. "Hey, I'll play dirty right back."

Simon looked down with a red tinge to his cheeks as Jayne started laughing again. Zoe, who had just returned to the table from bringing Wash his food, gave her a proud smile. Mal was watching her with a curious expression on his face while Book just shook his head, but she could tell that he was glad she had defended herself instead of letting Jayne get the best of her.

* * *

After dinner, Kaylee helped clean up all of the dishes and scrape the few leftovers onto a tray. She was surprised when Book offered to take Inara's meal to her in her quarters, but figured that the man just wanted to have a private talk with the Companion. Five minutes later, she was alone in the kitchen as everybody else cleared out. Book entered once again, without a tray in his hands and a pensive expression on his face.

"Find what you were looking for?" Kaylee asked softly.

"An interesting conversation at least," Book admitted.

"Aren't those the only ones worth having?" Kaylee asked with a grin.

"I suppose," the Shepherd said with a slight chuckle. "Like our conversation earlier."

"Oh, no. You aren't going to try to get me to change my views, are you?" Kaylee asked with a slight whine in her voice, like he was setting a big chore in front of her, although she knew that her views would never change, not when she knew that they were true.

"Everybody's entitled to their own opinion," Book acknowledged. "And I'm not saying that there is one that is correct. Take your Companion, for example. I believe that the houses are Buddhist, are they not? What makes her opinion any less valuable than mine?"

"And does this understanding transfer to anything else?" Kaylee asked nonchalantly.

Book laughed. "If you want to know if my opinions of Miss Inara have changed, you only have to asked."

'All right then, Shepherd," Kaylee said with a grin. "What do you think of our fabulously dressed Companion?"

"She's not what I expected," Book admitted.

"You expected her to try to come on to everybody, didn't you?" Kaylee sighed. "What people don't seem to realize about Companions is that they choose their clientele. Inara does not go after every man she sees, nor does she allow herself to be used by others."

"And I can respect that, even if her occupation still disgusts me."

"It's her choice," Kaylee shrugged. "I pretty much had the same reaction as you, but as I got to know Inara better, I realized that I had judged her too quickly. I hope that you do not repeat my mistake."

With that, Kaylee dried her hands on a dirty cloth from her pocket covered in engine grease and left the room. She was making her way to the engine room when her sensitive ears picked up on shouting coming from the cargo bay. She quickly hurried towards that area and ran across Jayne who was exiting his bunk, the shouting was much louder here.

"What…?"

"I don't know," Kaylee said quickly and they hurried together towards the cargo bay. She turned the corner with Jayne right behind her. There was Dobson, holding a gun towards Mal and Simon with Book trying to get close to said man.

"Why's everybody…" Kaylee began, stepping out into the open, but all she could see was the bullet speeding towards her.

**Okay, I'm cruel. This chapter is a bit shorter than my others ones, but come on, that is great a great stopping place! No? Please don't kill me! Seriously though, I loved writing this ****chapter. On a completely different note, who saw the Supernatural premier?! I've got to say (and this is not really spoilers) I found it a bit slow. Hoping for a bit more action next episode! Until next Sunday, please Favorite/Follow and review review review!**


	9. The Discovery

**So did nobody like the last chapter? I didn't get any feedback at all, not even a fav/follow:( Please guys, I really love feedback, so give me some!**

For once in her life, Kaylee was glad to be a Kitsune. As soon as she saw the bullet speeding her way, she immediately spun as quickly as she could out of the way. Unfortunately, while Kitsune were fast, they weren't like Superman and could outrun a speeding bullet. So, while the bullet did avoid all of her major organs, it did scrape fairly deep right above her hip bone.

The room spun a bit as she fell to the ground. The wound wouldn't have been life threatening even to a human, but _Gorram it_, it still hurt like the devil. She was only vaguely aware of what was happening in the rest of the room as she immediately tore her clothes out of the way, she still remembered her medical training, after all. She found Simon suddenly next to her with Mal and Inara close behind.

"How do you feel?" Simon asked professionally, examining her wound.

"I'm fine," Kaylee grunted. "Can somebody help me to the infirmary?"

"Kaylee, I don't think we should be moving you," Mal said, concerned.

"I'll be fine, Mal," she gritted out through her teeth as she moved to stand. Even a normal Kitsune could survive practically any amount of blood loss, so she wasn't too worried about bleeding out on the short trip to the medical room. Simon immediately went to help support her, but was surprised by how stable Kaylee already was on her feet. Mal was still hovering worriedly and wouldn't move more than two feet from Kaylee.

"Damn it, Mal, go figure out that son of a bitch that shot me, then come worry like a mother hen! I'm not going anywhere," Kaylee nearly shouted. Everybody in the room that heard her gave her an odd look and she cursed herself as she realized her sentence was completely out of the time period. She must've been a bit more in shock than she had realized. But there was no time to worry about that now as she turned and hobbled from the room with Simon right behind her and Inara picking up the tail.

Once she got to the infirmary, she rummaged in one of the drawers until she found the emergency first aid kit. She pulled out a needle and cut a piece of thread.

"Here, let me," Simon offered.

"I've got it," Kaylee snapped. She cleaned the wound quickly and efficiently. She may have never worked in the actual hospital part during her time working the morgues on Earth-that-was, but she still had to complete some basic training anyway. She grabbed the rag from her pocket and put it between her teeth. Maybe not the most sanitary option considering the rag was covered in engine grease, but she couldn't care less at the moment. Biting down hard, she pushed the needle into her skin. The only sign of her pain was a small whimper that escaped from behind the rag. Simon watched in morbid fascination as Kaylee sewed herself back up. Inara was washing the bandages that Kaylee had used to mop up some of the blood camly, or at least, she was pretending to be calm. Kaylee couldn't tell from where she was sitting if she was actually calm or not.

Wash suddenly came over the intercom. "Captain, we've been hailed by a cruiser. Ordered to stay on course and dock for prisoner transfer."

Simon's eyes widened in absolute panic and sprinted from the room.

Kaylee groaned and stood up to go after him. Inara hurried over and tried to push Kaylee back onto the chair. "No. It's his problem. Let Mal decide what to do with him."

"Inara, I just got shot over whatever trouble he's in. I'll be damned if I don't figure out what."

With that, she pushed past the Companion and slowly walked back to the cargo bay where she found Mal and simon in a shouting match with the rest of the crew, minus Wash and Jayne (who she assumed was securing Dobson), watching them.

"Enough!" Kaylee shouted. Everybody in the room turned to stare at her.

"Kaylee, what are you doing up? You should be getting some rest," Mal admonished.

"I tried," Inara muttered. Kaylee glared at her before turning her attention to Simon who shrunk under her gaze.

"I have no idea who you are or what you did to upset the Alliance. However, nearly every single person on this ship has done something to upset the Alliance at some point or another. We help each other through the good and the bad. We are a family. And you have broken us up." She turned her glare at Mal. "We _will_ run from the Alliance, if only to give Simon the chance to explain _everything_ to us. If he does not deliver, I will _personally _take a shuttle and return to the Alliance cruiser to give him up."

The room was silent after Kaylee's speech. Mal, staring at her, slowly reached over and pressed the button for the intercom. "Wash, change course and go for hard burn. We're running.

"So," Mal started in an attempt to take back command. He paused briefly, but Kaylee didn't say anything, relinquishing her control of the room. He continued. "Why don't we figure out exactly what's going on here."

With that, the captain turned around and walked straight to the giant box that Simon had brought along with him.

"What are you…? No. No!" Simon stuttered when he saw where Mal was heading. He started to run over, but Jayne, who had just come back into the room, grabbed him and held onto him easily.

"Where's the Fed?" Mal asked.

"Secure," Jayne answered. "Shepherd's with him. Seems to think he's not safe alone with me."

Don't!" Simon yelled again as Mal nodded. He walked over to the box and twisted a few of the dials. A white cloud substance that Kaylee recognized as dry ice billowed from the top and down the sides.

"Well, let's see what a man like you has done to upset the Alliance, bad enough to get one of my crew shot," Mal said before kicking the lid off as Simon kept yelling.

Kaylee edge over to look into the box as Mal made a little noise of surprise. She peeked inside and froze. A _girl_. No, this couldn't be happening. She had seen every person come on the ship, watched for any girl that could be the one Castiel had talked about. She had been so relieved that her mission would not start this trip. But this girl had been hiding from them the whole time. If this girl was the one that the angel had spoken of, her job had just gotten a lot harder. She was pretty sure she had overstepped her bounds earlier when she had commanded the Captain to turn the ship around. She doubted he would be in any mood to grant favors at the moment.

"Kaylee, are you alright?" Inara asked, startling her.

"Yes, I'm fine," Kaylee said, shaking off her shock and tuning back into the conversation that had been happening around her just as the girl screamed and tumbled out of the box. Inara ran forward with her robe, but Simon got there first.

"River?" he tried, but the girl screamed again and avoided his touch. Simon grabbed onto her and forced her to look into his eyes. "River. It's okay. It's okay. It's okay. I'm here."

"Simon?" the girl, River, whimpered before beginning to cry. "Simon… They-they talk to me. They want me… They want me to talk…"

Kaylee felt her heart soften for the girl that had clearly been through a traumatic experience and had not come out unscathed.

"They're gone… They're gone. We're safe now. We're safe. We're safe. I'm here," Simon soothed.

"What the hell is this?" Mal asked, breaking the silence that had descended over the cargo bay.

"This is my sister," Simon told Mal, defiantly.

Inara moved forward once again and offered her robe. It was a struggle for Simon to try to cover his sister because she would not let go of his shirt, still sobbing softly, but he did accomplish it.

Kaylee moved forward. She couldn't help it. As a mother, seeing anybody under twenty and in pain tended to bring out a softer side. She knelt down beside Simon who glared at her, daring her to hurt his sister.

"River?" she tried. The girl's eyes snapped up to meet hers and she almost gasped out loud. It was like River was looking into her very soul, like no secret was safe from her.

"You're it," River whispered before fading into unconsciousness.

Simon looked at Kaylee in confusion. She shrugged. While what River had said might have something to do with her mission from Castiel, she still had no idea why River would know her.

"We should take her to the infirmary," Kaylee said softly. Simon nodded silently. Mal motioned Jayne over to pick up River and Simon reluctantly surrendered his sister to the man. Jayne carried River to the other room and set her down with much more gentleness than Kaylee had ever seen or even expected from the man. After that was done, Mal ordered everybody to the eating area, including Book who he sent Inara to fetch.

Once everyone was gathered at the table, Simon stood at the end of the room and began his story. His story about his sister was fascinating, but she really started paying attention when he described her rescue.

"For two years I couldn't get near her. Then one night, I was contacted by a man. He seemed a bit odd, but he promised that he could get my sister out. He didn't ask for anything in return either. When I questioned him, he just said that he didn't like what was going on and was trying to stop it. I didn't trust him at first, but after a little while, he had convinced me that he did know what he was doing."

"Did he give a name?" Kaylee interrupted.

"Yes. Castiel," Simon answered.

"Do you know this man, Kaylee?" Mal asked.

"Not really, but I think Crowley does," she answered. "If I'm thinking of the right person, he is a good man and will help anybody for the sake of helping them."

"Don't find many of those nowadays," Mal muttered before gesturing that Simon should continue.

"Anyways, he was able to help me get the proper identity to sneak into the base as an inspector for the project. It was weird, though. There were symbols, archaic symbols, painted everywhere. All he insisted was the I try to subtly try to make a scratch with a knife he gave me in every single one I come across and he would try to join me inside. Nearly everything went according to plan, for once, and Castiel joined us as we were making our escape. He stayed behind, fighting the guard so we could get out of the place. We made it back to the ship and River immediately had to go into cryo because of what they had done to her. Castiel somehow made it out of the base and joined us. We were dropped on Persephone with the advice to go find a ride on a Firefly because your crew, according to him, was the best in the 'verse."

Mal was obviously pleased at the compliment, but was still wary. "How did he know of us?"

"I don't know," Simon shrugged. "Maybe that Crowley guy Kaylee said?"

"What should we do with you?" Mal mused. "Cause you're bringing a heap of trouble on me and mine. You've already gotten my mechanic shot, who's next in your flight from the Alliance?"

"I'm sorry. I didn't think…" Simon began but was cut off by Mal.

"No, you didn't think!" Mal shouted in obvious agitation. "You rich boys. You don't think the rest of us have lives, too? You have put my ship and crew in danger and I don't generally plan for having two fugitives on board."

"How much does the Alliance know?" Zoe asked Wash.

"I can't say," Wash grimaced. "I killed the message pretty quick, so they might just have had our position."

"Or they might have personal profiles on each of us," Mal put in. "'Til that fed wakes up, we won't know."

"So what do we do now?" Jayne asked. Mal deliberated.

"We'll finish the flight to Boros," he decided. "We need a job and Richie may have one."

"What about us?" Simon asked.

"If my crew survives the rest of the flight to Boros, then we'll drop you off there and you will never come near us with your troubles again."

"Mal, we can't just leave them," Inara stated calmly. "They need help."

"We'll be fine," Simon said, clearly just happy that they weren't going to be thrown out into space.

"Yes?" Inara questioned, raising an eyebrow delicately. "With what money? I know that any person that is on the Alliance's watchlist would have his accounts frozen and I don't see you hauling around enough to survive more than a couple months. You would also not be wanting to stay in the same place. You'll always be on the run. Do you really think that you could live like that? No, you need a crew who knows your story and will help protect you."

"But that is _not _going to be us," Mal said firmly.

"Then I'm leaving with them," Inara said immediately.

"I'd leave, too," Kaylee spoke up.

"Kaylee, you were shot because of them!" Mal exclaimed.

"And I would gladly be shot again. This is just wrong and it has to stop. I'll help protect them in any way I have to," Kaylee said calmly. Mal stared at her for a moment before he stormed out of the room. Wash shook his head and exited the room as well, going back to the bridge with Zoe following. Jayne gave a grunt and followed Mal.

"Thank you, Kaylee, Inara," Simon said softly. "That means a lot to me, to us, that you would give up your lives here to help me and my sister."

"Nobody should be experimented on like an animal," Inara said, her disgust breaking through her normally serene facade. "While I may have supported unification, this is taking the power of the central government too far. If helping you and your sister helps make up for letting this happen in the first place, then I will gladly do anything to stop this abuse."

Inara smiled gently at Simon and left the room.

"I truly am sorry that you got shot," Simon apologized to Kaylee.

"No harm done," Kaylee said, waving off his concern. While she couldn't show him, she was already completely healed under the bandage that she put over the wound. "Glad to spill blood for a good cause. It's better than you being shot and your sister not having anybody."

"I've never seen anybody move so fast," Simon mused. "I thought that the bullet would've hit you in your stomach, but it only grazed your side."

"Just lucky, I guess," she shrugged. She had hoped that nobody would've picked up on that, but apparently the good doctor had.

"Anyways," Simon shrugged. "I should go check up on River."

With that, he left, leaving Kaylee and Book sitting at the table.

"You have been very strong today," Book observed as Kaylee sagged at the table.

"I've had to be," Kaylee said.

"Clearly," Book said, chuckling lightly. "I can't say that it's everyday that I see somebody get shot."

"I can't say so either," Kaylee said with a small smile. "Normally I'm not in the fighting, I prefer to hang off to the sides. Not to say that I can't take care of myself, just that violence isn't really my thing."

"Did you really stitch yourself up?" Book asked.

Kaylee shrugged again. She had done way too many revealing things today. She would be playing clean-up for weeks now. "Back on Persephone, there were two fields I was interested in, mechanical engineering and medicine. Completely different, yeah? Anyways, Crowley let me do some schooling for both before I eventually decided to go with full time mechanic."

"It's not just impressive that you know what to do, but to be able to do it on yourself," Book shook his head in disbelief. "That has to be nearly impossible."

Kaylee shrugged again. She really didn't like the fuss that was being kicked up over the stitches.

"Speaking of Crowley," Book said suddenly after a moment's silence. "You said that he knows this Castiel man that Simon was talking of?"

Now Kaylee was getting really uncomfortable. The Shepherd was being way too curious about everything today.

"Yeah, I think so," she said, struggling to keep her blase attitude so as not to raise even more suspicion.

"You seem to know a lot of people named after the people in the Winchester gospels," he observed.

'Dangerous Territory' flashed through her head. This was too close. She had to put this down now.

"I guess. Bible names do tend to be popular," she pointed out.

"But I've been thinking, Kaylee, about what you said about faith and believing, and if it could be possible," Book mused. Kaylee's breath started to quicken and she hoped against hope that he wouldn't make the connection. "Is it possible, and I'm most likely going to sound insane here, but is it possible that these people you know, happen to be the ones mentioned in the gospel?"

"Yes."

But it wasn't Kaylee that answered.

**Hehehe! I'm sorry, but cliffhangers are just too much fun to write:) Or, as my beta so lovingly says- "You and your gorram cliffhangers." So, we've got River out into the open now and Book is well on his way to figuring out who Kaylee is. Any guesses as to who said that last line? I'd love to hear them! As always, follow/favorite and please review!**


	10. The Revelation

**I'm not normally one to sound all whiny and needy, but this is a bit ridiculous. I have gotten zero response the last few chapters. So here's the deal, I will put out one more chapter next week, but unless somebody reviews, this story will be put on hiatus until I feel like somebody is actually reading it. Wow, that sounded stupidly selfish, but do you guys realize how unmotivating it is to know that people are reading your story but not responding? Anyways, thank you to my beta, Katsa-the-Graceling, for being my biggest support!**

_"Is it possible, and I'm most likely going to sound insane here, but is it possible that these people you know, happen to be the ones mentioned in the gospel?"_

_"Yes."_

_But it wasn't Kaylee that answered._

Both Kaylee and Book jumped and turned to where the voice came from.

"What...?" Book asked with a sharp intake of breath and backed away from the table.

"Castiel!" Kaylee hissed. "What are you doing here?"

The angel tilted his head. "I wished to discuss the mission I proposed to you."

"But not here!" Kaylee protested, still keeping her voice low. She didn't want anybody to come while Castiel was in full sight. She gestured towards Book. "You're going to give the poor man a heart attack!"

And it seemed like she might be right. Book was breathing heavily, shaking his head slowly. His hands were fumbling for a small book in his pocket, the Bible. With shaking hands, he opened the book to a page and read.

"'And he walked into the building. Not a bullet pierced him as the lightning continued outside. His clothes were messy, a suit and a brown trench coat, but he did not care. For such trivial matters do not concern an angel.'"

"Wonderful job, Castiel, you just blew everything," Kaylee snipped sarcastically.

"I do not see what I ruined. He was approaching the answer as it was," the angel said calmly.

"I wasn't going to tell him! It's too dangerous!" Kaylee said. At this point, she was having an extremely hard time keeping her voice down.

"So it's all true then?" Book asked. "You do know the... others of this world."

Kaylee turned slowly, reluctant to look the Shepherd in the eye. "I'm sorry I have lied, but my world can be dangerous, especially now. If you know what's best for you, you'd leave."

"But that is my decision to make," Book said firmly before softening. "And perhaps your friends here would like to know of the secret you keep."

"No!" Kaylee nearly shouted. "You have read the Winchester gospels, or at least the watered down version. The Bible is not a fairy tale. Everybody who gets involved in this mess gets hurt. I will not drag my friends into this!"

"I got dragged into it just now," Book pointed out.

"No, you did not," Kaylee seethed. "We are never going to talk of this again. This is my mission and my business. There is no need for you to get involved or for us to even speak of this again."

Kaylee turned her glare to Castiel who was watching silently. "Now, we are going to go somewhere private to discuss whatever you need."

"The man is trustworthy," the angel said suddenly. "You should have somebody here that knows."

"That is my decision to make," Kaylee hissed. "And I decided as soon as I signed up on this boat that nobody would know. I have kept my secret for so long now and I am fine with the solitude that it brings me. Crowley and Jacob are the only ones I need."

"I want to help," Book said sincerely.

"For the last time, no!" Kaylee shouted and ran from the room.

Castiel sighed. "Do not be offended. She has had a troubled life."

"She's so young to be involved in something this large," Book murmured.

That brought a chuckle out of the angel. "She's older than you."

Book looked startled. "What?!"

The angle chuckled again. "Maybe at one point you'll find out her story."

Castiel gave one last smile to Book before disappearing in a flutter of wings.

* * *

"Inara!" Mal called, entering the Companion's shuttle without a second thought only to stop short at seeing Simon already in there.

"What are you doing in my shuttle?" Inara asked with a dangerous hint to her voice.

"It's my shuttle. You rent it," Mal retorted.

"Then when I'm behind on the rent, you can enter unasked," Inara smirked. Simon ducked his head and bowed out of the room. "What do you want?"

"I was actually wondering 'bout Kaylee," Mal said hesitantly. "Have you really talked to her?"

"I imagine the events of the day have been traumatic," Inara said calmly, turning to fold a blanket that was draped over the back of a chair. "And you have not been the kindest either."

"It is that boy's gorram fault that she got shot," Mal pointed out, having to focus so as to not lose his temper all over again.

"Yes," Inara mused, deep in thought. "She was incredibly strong through the entire ordeal.

"At least Simon was able to patch her up okay," Mal murmured.

Inara looked at him in surprise. "He didn't."

"What do you mean?"

"You were not told?" Inara asked, incredulously. "She did everything herself, including stitching herself up. I've never seen anything like it."

"She did what?!" Mal nearly yelled. "She coulda made it worse!"

Inara shook her head. "No. She knew exactly what she was doing. I don't know how, or even why, she knows what she does, but I have learned that you do not question Kaylee about her secrets. She plays the game well."

"What game?" Mal asked. How had he missed all of this?

"She has lied about who she is since the first day I met her," Inara confided. "Everyone here believes that she is the innocent little girl from Persephone, but there is something deeper to her that I can't figure out."

"She fooled us all," Mal muttered.

"But perhaps I'm imagining something more sinister than what is," Inara said with a shake of her head. "Perhaps she fought in the war as well and just wishes to forget it all."

"Yes, maybe that's it," Mal said, a bit more cheerfully. He didn't want to think the worst of his mechanic.

"Whatever the case may be, Kaylee is a kind girl. She deserves her privacy and I will not intrude on our friendship to learn meaningless things."

* * *

"Amy."

Kaylee jumped up from her position curled up on the bed and faced Castiel who was watching her regretfully.

"I am sorry for revealing part of your secret before you were ready," the angel apologized.

"You were right, though," Kaylee sighed. "Shepherd Book was close to figuring out you and Crowley anyway."

"It would be good for you to have someone on your side here," Castiel pointed out again.

"Perhaps," Kaylee acknowledged. "I have lived so long in secrecy that having somebody outside of Crowley and my son knowing would be odd."

"You will need somebody to support any decision you make here so the rest of your crewmates will listen to you," Castiel said.

"How many decisions are you expecting me to have to make that go against my crew?" Kaylee asked.

"More than you may realize," Castiel said mysteriously.

Kaylee shook her head. "I'm not sure how possible that may be. Mal is probably already out for me, standing up to him twice. At least I had Inara with me the second time."

"Another that I believe could benefit you by knowing your secret," Castiel nodded.

Kaylee snorted. "Sure, I'll just announce to the entire ship my life story. Hi, my name is actually Amy Pond. I'm over 500 years old and can kill you at any moment because, guess what? Your brains just happen to be my normal food source. By the way, I'm on a mission from an angel and my best friend is a demon. Please trust me again in a thousand years because I'll still be around. Yep, I can see that going over well."

Castiel gave a little chuckle at Kaylee's rant. "You remind me of Dean Winchester sometimes."

Kaylee blinked in surprise. "I'm not sure if I should be happy or offended."

"When _I _say it, that is a compliment," Castiel assured her.

Kaylee sighed and shook her head. "So what is it you wanted to talk to me about?"

"The girl, River Tam, you've met her, I assume?" Castiel asked, immediately going serious.

"If by met, you mean having her scream at everybody and everything before falling unconscious, yes," Kaylee said with a grim expression.

Castiel narrowed his eyes in disgust. "She was to be the most important person of this era, but the Alliance broke her."

"What is her importance?" Kaylee asked.

Castiel sighed. "She was to be a prophet."

"What?!" Kaylee exploded. "I thought that was suppose to be impossible! Crowley told me. Metatron changed the tablets, there aren't supposed to be any prophets now. Even after you all took Heaven back, there weren't any more prophets. How can there suddenly be a new one if the word of God was changed?"

"You must understand, Amy," Castiel said in his gravelly voice. "None of us were expecting this either. To start off, River was never a normal girl. As I'm sure her brother has told you, she was always a brilliant child. But what nobody, not even her, understood is that she was psychic as well. Most assumed that she was just extremely intuitive, or that she was subconsciously putting things she observed together to understand the thoughts of others. She was the perfect choice to be a new prophet. The best are normally intune with the forces of the world before they ever receive holy assistance. However, we never looked at her much. She was just another psychic in a world where there would never be a new prophet."

Castiel got a far away look in his eye. "But everything changed very suddenly. Heaven is now ruled over a council of nine angels that are given their position by the rest. I am one of them, however reluctant I might be for ruling. We have meetings every few months to assess both the situation in heaven, which never quite recovered after Metatron, and the situation on Earth, or now the 'verse as most call it. We were in the middle of a meeting when a flash of light appeared in the middle of the table. There stood one of the tablets. But it wasn't just any of the tablets, it was the one that I had smashed to break Metatron's power. Not only was it whole, it had reverted back to the original, if the drawings Kevin had done were correct. We called in Joshua, heaven's speaker to God while he was still around. He admitted that God had been attempting to correct the issues with the tablets before rejuvenating, or as your generation might say, "juicing them up," to reactivate them."

"That's incredible," Kaylee muttered.

"We were ecstatic," Castiel said with a small smile. "God had not abandoned us as completely as we thought. He was not back, but he cared. When we received the list of possible prophets, there was only one name, River Tam. Going back to River, the Alliance had somehow learned of her, not only of her intelligence, but of her psychic abilities. How, I do not know. They offered her a position at the academy, but they took her as an experiment."

Castiel looked down at his hands. "It had been unanimously decided that I should be her protector, as I had been in contact with the last prophets before Metatron ended the line. Imagine my surprise to find that she was unreachable. I do not know if the Alliance had learned of her future as a prophet before or after her capture, but from what little intelligence I had been able to gain from the inside, they did know of her destiny at some point or another since they were interrogating her of the angel activities. They had warded the whole place against angels and even demons, as I had Crowley try to get in. He did not know what for, but quickly realized that the Alliance knew of our existence."

"So that's why he always warned me about the Alliance," Kaylee murmured. "I didn't care for them either, but he always seemed to know a bit more than what he was telling, saying that I would be experimented on."

"And he was right," Castiel told her gravely. "I believe that Mr. Tam told you of his rescue of his sister. It was not easy to arrange, especially without telling him what exactly he was dealing with, but we managed. I do believe that he thinks his sister was taken by crazy religious people in the Alliance."

Castiel's voice held a small amount of amusement at the thought but quickly became remorseful once again. "River delved deep within her brain to protect herself. I do not know if she will ever be the same again. Never the less, she was activated as prophet only two weeks ago. I'm sure that the random flashes of heavenly activities are not helping her already delicate state."

"How could Heaven do that to the poor girl?" Kaylee demanded. "She should've been allowed to heal, not thrown into this mess!"

"It was not our choice," Castiel said, shaking his head. "The council was partly chosen because we all care for the humans. We would not have allowed this to happen if we had the choice, even if it meant the word of God had to be delayed a while longer."

Kaylee took a deep breath. "No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have blamed you. I know from both the Winchester gospels and Crowley's stories how benevolent you are with the humans. I suppose I'm just frustrated that something like this could happen to an innocent girl."

"That is why she needs to be protected," Castiel said.

"Then put her in one of those angel safehouses," Kaylee demanded. "I don't know how much good me and my oblivious crew are going to be if the whole Alliance is after us."

"I can't do that," Castiel said, shaking his head. "It was agreed when the council was first formed that the safe houses could only be used with the consent of the whole council _and_ the consent of the person that has to stay there to prevent any incident like the one with Zachariah from occurring again. As River is in no condition to make that decision, we cannot do that, no matter how much we want to."

"That's stupid," Kaylee spit. "It's your own fault she's in this situation to begin with."

"If we break our own law, the rest of the angels are allowed to overthrow us. It was a clause insisted by all when we started considering a form of democracy. However peaceful Heaven is at the moment, there will always be protesters to the current rule. We cannot let them gain the upper hand."

"So you will sacrifice the mind of a young girl instead?!" Kaylee shouted.

Castiel fixed her with a steady gaze that made her want to shrink into the bed, but she held her ground. "You lived through the last Angel War, Amy, do you really want for that to happen again?"

"I suppose not," Kaylee sighed. "What was River suppose to be the prophet of anyways? Every one of them had a main purpose. I know that Chuck was the one who wrote the Winchester gospels that were mysteriously finished. Kevin was a prophet to translate the tablets. What was River's purpose?"

Castiel gave her a wry smile. "She was going to chronicle your life."

Kaylee was stunned into silence.

"Me?" she squeaked.

"Yes, you. Your involvement with the Winchesters, Crowley, the times that you have lived through those all make you a prime subject for a new gospel. They do come around every so often," Castiel said with a smirk.

"So that's why you chose _me_ to protect River," Kaylee said in understanding.

"Indeed," Castiel nodded.

Just then Mal came on over the intercom. _"This is the Captain. We're passing another ship. Looks to be R__eavers. From the size, probably a raiding party. Could be they're headed somewhere particular, could be they've already hit someone and they're full up. So everyone, stay calm. We try to run, they'll chase us. It's their way. We're holding course. We should be passing 'em in a minute, so we'll see what they do. Zoe, you come on up to the bridge."_

"Shield us," Kaylee demanded without a second thought. "We've got enough on our hands already, we don't need to deal with Reavers as well. It's the least you could do."

Castiel chuckled and nodded. Nothing was immediately apparent, but Kaylee could feel a tingling on her skin.

A few moments later, Mal came back on. _"They held course. We're in the clear."_

Kaylee breathed a sigh of relief. She trusted the angel to protect them, but that didn't mean that Reavers weren't a scary thought, exactly what she could be if she didn't have the restraint. She sighed and stood up.

"I should be getting back out there before they start to wonder where I am. Besides, I'd like to check up on River. I'm sure Simon is proficient medically, but maybe I can help more, knowing her condition."

"Of course," Castiel said, nodding. "I will leave you now. Until the next time, Amy."

"Not in front of people next time!" Kaylee warned him quickly.

Castiel chuckled. "I won't forget again."

He disappeared in a fluttering of wings. Kaylee climbed the ladder out of her bunk and made her way to the infirmary. River was still asleep when she reached the door, but as soon as she entered the room, the girl shot up, startling Kaylee. River's eyes flew around the room wildly until they settled on Kaylee.

"It's you," the girl said.

"It's me," Kaylee confirmed, believing that the girl was acknowledging the fact that Kaylee was suppose to be her focus.

"Simon…" River muttered, standing up slowly and moving towards the door.

"I can take you to Simon," Kaylee said gently before she felt a kick to the head. She flew to the ground, hitting her head against a table as she went down. Her head spun. No matter how resistant Kitsune were, two blows to the head were still not a good thing. It took her a moment to regain her senses and stand up. River was gone. She had no doubts as to who had kicked her and taken the girl. She ran as fast as _humanly_ possible to the cargo bay, where she heard fighting. She came upon the scene, with Simon holding a gun to Dobson. River was in a corner, shaking with fear.

Not wanting to waste time, she walked calmly into the room, giving off an aura of control that was obvious to everyone in the room.

"Simon, put down the gun before you hurt someone," Kaylee said in disgust.

"What? But…" Simon stuttered.

Kaylee leveled him a glare. "I have no intention of this man accomplishing his goal, but you have never fired a gun before and are more likely to do harm than good."

Reluctantly, Simon surrendered his gun to her. She turned to Dobson who was examining the new player in his game.

"How are you not concussed?" the man asked. "I kicked you pretty hard in the head, and I saw you hit the table."

"I've had worse injuries," Kaylee said with a glare.

"You have no idea the danger she presents," Dobson tried. "She could destroy everything."

"Oh, but I know everything," Kaylee smirked. "_Everything_."

Unseen by Simon or River, she let her eyes flash yellow, showing Dobson just how much she knew about what she was dealing with. Clearly he had just figured out the same thing as he gulped and his hands started shaking. He made a dash for the exit, but one quick aim and fire, and he was dead on the floor. Kaylee lowered the smoking gun and examined her work. A nice clean shot through the back of his head. Not bad for someone who hadn't practiced in a century or so.

At the sound of the gunshot, people came running. First out was Mal with Zoe and Jayne close behind. Inara peeked from over the railing to see the commotion. A groggy Book, who appeared to have been knocked out by Dobson, stumbled into the room.

"Kaylee, what happened?!"

**Longest chapter so far, hope you liked it! So what did you think of River and her purpose? Book now knows a bit more about Kaylee and you can see the crew starting to look at her a bit differently as well. I don't want next week to be my last, so please favorite/follow and review!**


	11. The Consequences

**Wow, so, umm, I'm so sorry for what I did last week. That was mean and cruel. I promise, I will never ask for anything like that again. Huge thank you to everyone who indulged in my insanity and left reviews: Mad Bobert, Barrel-of-fun, Drogonan, max artemis potter, and mourocf. Also thanks to 1392 for favoriting and VoviaVolcano for following. My beta, as always, is KatsatheGraceling, so go check her out on archive of our own! Here is the chapter for you guys. Again, thank you so, so much.**

_"Kaylee, what happened?!" _

Kaylee spun around, bringing the gun up immediately, pointing it at Jayne. "I don't know what happened, Captain, but Jayne was the last to see this man locked up."

"Put the gun down, _mei-mei_, before somebody gets hurt," Mal said cautiously. "Jayne, did you have something to do with this?"

Jayne, staring at the unmoving gun in Kaylee's hand, gulped. "I don't know, Mal. He offered me money, but I wasn't gonna take it."

Kaylee narrowed her eyes at the mercenary, but couldn't see any hint of a lie in his eyes. She slowly lowered the gun.

"Kaylee, please, can you give me the gun?" Mal asked.

Kaylee laughed harshly. "Why? You think I don't know how to hold a gun properly? Fire it properly? Because I've got news for you, I am more than apt with a gun. You don't get to tell me what to do."

Mal's nostrils flared. "You are still on my ship, Kaylee. Give the gun over."

"Yes, your Majesty," Kaylee sneered. With a mock bow, she exited the room. As soon as she was sure she was out of view of anyone, she sprinted to her bunk. She collapsed on her bed and began to sob.

_"What the hell had she done?"_ She hadn't killed anyone in so long, yet here she was: a cold, calculating killer. The stupid mission Castiel had given her was messing with her head. She had gotten so good at playing her part that she had forgotten just how unlike everybody else she was.

There was a knock on her door. Wiping her face, she reached over and hit a button to unlock the door. The panel swung in and Book slowly descended the ladder.

"Shepherd," Kaylee greeted coolly. She still wasn't comfortable knowing that Book knew even part of her secret.

"Kaylee, can I talk to you?" he asked quietly.

Kaylee sighed and motioned him over to sit on the bed next to her, the only comfortable place in the cramped space. Silently, he moved over and sat beside her. Before he could start, she began.

"I am sorry for how I have acted today. I have been under a lot of pressure lately."

"And I am sorry for pushing the matter earlier," Book apologized. "It is your secret and yours to keep."

Kaylee hesitated. "Actually… I talked to Castiel afterwards. And… Uh… It's true. I could use somebody here that knows."

Book blinked in surprise. "Kaylee, I… Uh, I don't know if I want to know."

Now it was Kaylee's turn to be surprised. "You don't?"

Book shook his head. "After your panic earlier, I sat down and I thought about everything that I knew, from both the Winchester gospels and what Castiel had said. Your life must be a terrible burden to bear."

"Only two people have ever truly known me," Kaylee admitted.

Book looked at her sadly. "A lonely life."

Kaylee shook her head. "I have never felt lonely. Having Crowley was always enough for me. Not until recently, that is. When Castiel first gave me the mission, I thought that I had a chance, but then I realized that there was nobody here that I could trust. There was nobody here that knew me. I have been playing a part, a part played so well that I started to believe that I was Kaylee Fyre, a mechanic from Persephone. But I'm not, and I never will be."

Book was silent for a moment. "Kaylee, I don't want to know everything, but if there is something specific that you need to tell someone about, I am here."

Kaylee grimaced. "There is no way to only tell part of the story without everything else coming out to. Either you'd have to be all the way in or all the way out."

Book sighed. "I'm just not ready yet, Kaylee, to know everything."

"It's fine," Kaylee said, blinking a few tears from her eyes. _What was the matter with her?_ Why was it suddenly a big deal that somebody _didn't _want to know her secret? Hadn't that been what she was trying to do all her life? So why did it hurt?

"Oh, _wong ba duhn_, Kaylee," Book grimaced, seeing the tears on her face.

"I'm sorry," Kaylee murmured. "I'm a total rollercoaster today."

"Rollercoaster?" Book asked.

"I guess they don't have those now," Kaylee said with a dry laugh. "With hovering cars, I guess you don't need speedy wheels on a track."

"Castiel was right. You are old," Book muttered. His expression quickly changed to horrified. "I don't mean you're _old_ I just mean…"

"It's okay," Kaylee smirked. "Exactly how much did Castiel tell you about my age?"

"Just that you were older than me," Book said meekly, hoping that Kaylee wouldn't get mad from his knowledge.

"You don't have to be afraid of me," Kaylee said assuredly.

"After the way you were with that gun earlier, I think every person in the gorram 'verse has a reason to be afraid."

"Oh gosh, was I really that bad?" Kaylee asked frantically.

"Kaylee, you were so cold that hell could've freezed over," Book said wryly.

"Shit," she muttered, putting her head in her hands. "I knew that I had gone bit far, but not passed the line."

"At least you stopped before it got further out of hand," Book grimaced. "Can I ask you a question?"

"You just did," Kaylee said, her small smirk lost in her hands. "But go ahead."

"You don't say… explicit things in Chinese. Why?"

Kaylee laughed, a real one. "Do they not say cursing now a days? I kind of lost track of the social norms at Crowley's base. Is it 'improper' to not cuss in Chinese?"

"I guess," Book shrugged. "It's kind of been normal for the past, oh, 200 years or so."

"Crap. I can't seem to do anything right today."

There was silence for a moment. "How old are you Kaylee?"

Kaylee looked surprised. "I thought you didn't want to know anything?"

"Is your age dangerous?"

"No, but the story behind it could be."

"Well, I'm not asking for the story," Book smirked.

"I'm over 500 years old," Kaylee admitted, not looking at Book.

Book blinked. "Okay. Not the answer I was expecting, but I'll go with it."

"You're not going to run?" Kaylee asked incredulously.

"I don't really have anywhere to run to," Book pointed out. "Besides, I wouldn't have asked if I didn't think I could handle the answer."

Kaylee breathed a sigh of relief. "You have been very kind and understanding, Shepherd."

"It's my job, Kaylee. If you ever need anything, I'm here."

"Can I ask a favor?" Kaylee said hesitantly.

"Anything," Book promised.

"Could you keep an eye on me? When I'm with the crew, I mean," Kaylee asked. "I have slipped up more times than I care to admit. If you see me going too far, pull me back. I need to know that somebody can do that for me. Please."

"What the hell is going on with my crew?!" Mal shouted.

* * *

"I don't believe it's the crew so much as Kaylee," Zoe said serenely.

"I still can't believe she could do something like that," Wash muttered from his place in the pilot's seat. The group had met in the cockpit soon after the standoff in the cargo bay.

"I didn't even know she could shoot a gun," Mal admitted.

"Neither did I," Zoe agreed.

"She's no newbie," Wash said. "We all saw the shot. It was perfect, straight through the back of the head."

"And that's what I'm concerned abou'. How could we have not realized this?" Mal ranted. "It's one thing to not want to talk about your life, but it's another to be a perfect shot. And that whole stitching herself up thing? That's just gruesome. How twisted do you have to be to poke a needle into yourself when you have a perfectly good doctor right next to you?"

"I don't know, Sir. I thought I knew her," Zoe mourned.

"We all did," Wash assured her.

"So what are you going to do?" Zoe asked.

"What _can _I do is the better question," Mal sighed, running his hand through his hair.

"We'll be at Boros in a couple hours. You can decide then," Wash suggested. "I, for one, would like to know what Kaylee has to say for herself. There may be things that we do not know, but she has been with us for months. I forget all that she has done for us just with this new info."

"He has a point, Sir," Zoe agreed. "Just because we find out that Kaylee can shoot a gun or has some medical knowledge doesn't mean that she can't be the girl that we have known, as well."

"I'll have to talk to her," Mal decided. "I need to see if she's still the same or not."

"Why don't you have Inara speak to her?" Zoe suggested. "She knows how to get to people."

"I talked with her before the shootin'. She's apparently been trying for the past few months to get Kaylee's story. No luck," Mal grimaced.

"Wait, wait, wait," Wash said, sitting up straighter. "Ianra has known that something's been up for _months_?"

"According to her."

"_Shun Sheng Duh Gao Wahn_," Wash muttered, rubbing his face with his hands.

"Maybe this is a bit more serious than we realized," Zoe admitted.

"You think?" Mal asked sarcastically.

"No need to bite my head off, Sir," Zoe said stoically. "It's still not a wise move to make a decision before you know all the facts."

"But what if she doesn't give them?" Wash speculated.

Mal sent a glare towards his pilot. "If that happens, we'll figure things out then."

* * *

Kaylee walked slowly towards the infirmary, hoping against hope that she wouldn't run into any of the crew. She paused outside of the door. She took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

"Come in!" Simon called.

She pushed the door open and entered quietly.

"Oh, uh, hi Kaylee," Simon stuttered, frantically cleaning some of the counter off.

"Hi, Simon," Kaylee said softly. She looked at River on the bed. "How is she?"

"She's stable for now," he replied. "I just don't know what happened to her."

"Her mind is troubled," Kaylee murmured, watching River's eyes shift frantically under her eyelids.

"But why?" Simon muttered, twisting a few dials on one of the machines he had.

"At least she got out before they killed her," Kaylee said.

"I don't think they would've killed her," Simon disagreed. "Whatever they were doing, she was too valuable to their twisted experiment."

"Perhaps you're right," Kaylee shrugged, not wanting to give any of her knowledge away. While she was sure that Simon would do anything for his sister, looking at the evidence so far, she wasn't sure if he could handle all of the information she could give.

"By the way," Simon said, interrupting her inner monologue. "Castiel, that man who helped me rescue River, you know him, yes?"

"Like I said earlier, Crowley knows him better than I do," Kaylee shrugged, not liking where this line of questioning was going.

"You said the name earlier. Who is he?" Simon asked.

"He's my best friend, almost like a brother if I'm honest," Kaylee said, smiling a bit at the thought of the demon (and how screwed up that thought just sounded). "He might run a smuggling operation, but if you earn his trust, you will never meet a more loyal and dedicated soul than his."

"He's back on Persephone?" Simon asked.

"Yep, he's set up a base there. Normally I live with him, but I wanted to join this crew. Although I don't know how long Mal will let me stay," Kaylee mourned. "I haven't exactly been the best crew member the past couple days."

"Whether you stay or go, I would like to thank you for helping my sister," Simon said, avoiding commenting on Kaylee's possible departure. "You… You killed a man for us."

"I did what I thought I had to," Kaylee grimaced. "People should not be treated like lab rats. What the Alliance has done to you and your sister is _wrong_ and I will do my best to help to this from ever happening again."

"Thank you," Simon said again. "It means a lot."

"No problem," Kaylee shrugged.

"Well it's become my problem," Mal said, startling both Kaylee and Simon.

"Oh, hi Captain," Kaylee said immediately, slipping back into the persona she had had before.

Mal watched her carefully. "Wait outside for me, Kaylee. I'll talk to you in a moment."

"Yes, Sir," Kaylee said and exited quickly. She breathed a sigh of relief as soon as she was out the door. Maybe, just maybe, if she showed Mal enough respect he would let her stay. That was a big maybe. She _definitely_ couldn't reveal anything to Mal. He was so suspicious, she would be off the boat in a blink. She mused to herself as the muted voices of Mal and Simon could be heard through the walls of the infirmary. She looked up as Mal opened the door and exited into the hallway.

They stood, staring, each daring the other to say the first word.

"I'm sorry, Mal," Kaylee said, allowing Mal to take the 'boss' part. "I know that you probably have a lot of questions, but I'm going to tell you right now, there are a lot of parts to my life that are extremely private. I have been through a lot. I just wanted you to know before I get kicked off of Serenity that I would never harm any of the crew. I was only trying to protect River."

"Whoa, Kaylee, nothing is decided yet," Mal said, holding his hands up.

"It's not?" Kaylee asked, looking at Mal hopefully.

"No, not _yet_," Mal stressed. He sighed. "Kaylee, I don't want to believe the worst of you. I don't think that you would hurt us, but there is so much that you haven't told us. I respect your privacy, but you let us believe that you were a different person. You _deceived_ us. _How could you do something like that?_"

"I'm sorry, Mal," Kaylee looking down, refusing to let him see the tears forming in her eyes.

"Kaylee," Mal said, gently pulling her chin up. "I may not know you, but you were so _strong_ today. You had to make a tough choice. By taking that man's life, you helped protect an innocent girl. I can see it in your eyes now. You're asking yourself whether you made the right choice or not. You're worried what the rest of us will think of you. Kaylee, however differently we may see you, we will always remember who you were before."

He smirked. "And maybe, if what Inara tells me of your manipulation skills are true, maybe you can convince us that this was all a dream."

Kaylee laughed slightly through her tears. "I was never _that_ good. All I ever did was try to keep some of myself a secret."

"See, a bit of laughter will do you a heap of good," Mal said, holding Kaylee by the shoulders. He tried to ignore how Kaylee hadn't denied the jab about manipulation.

"Thank you, Mal," Kaylee said. She startled him by throwing herself into a hug. He was stiff for a moment, but eventually put his arms around her. He awkwardly patted her back as her sobs came back once more.

After standing in the hallway for a couple of moments, Kaylee slowly pulled back. She wiped her tears from her face and sighed.

"Thank you for being so kind, Mal."

"Anytime, Kaylee," he responded.

She gave a little smile before walking away. Mal let out a little breath he didn't realize he was holding. _Ta Ma Duh_. That was not how he was planning that conversation to go. But one look into those bright, teary eyes and he was gone. He didn't know if Kaylee had done that on purpose or if she was truly sorry for what she had put the crew through. Whatever the case was, it looked like Kaylee would be staying on with the crew for a while longer. He would, however, keep a closer eye on her. There was no telling what could happen next

**So? Finally this episode is finished! This chapter is very emotionally based without a lot of action, but I needed to show some of the reactions to what happened last chapter. Hope you liked it! Please, please, please review. It would mean a lot to me, especially after last week. Until next week:)**


	12. The Record

**I am so sorry! This weekend was hectic and this chapter was honestly not finished until half an hour ago. I'd like to thank D. for following and a huge thank you to my beta, KatsatheGraceling, for keeping my head on. Onto the story!**

Kaylee sighed. U-day on Serenity was always an interesting day, but Mal hadn't _quite_ gotten in his usual fight yet. For now, she tinkered quietly on the engine. At least she could be alone. They were trying to be subtle about it, but every person on the ship had an eye on her. It was getting a bit tiresome. The only person she felt like she could truly talk to at the moment was Shepherd Book. No, she had not told him everything, but if she said anything weird, he wouldn't question it. Even Inara and Zoe had been more closed off than before, although Inara tried to pretend that nothing was wrong.

She sighed again as the engine started up and the ship began to shake. The mayday call from Mal had been received. Three minutes later, the smooth flight of space travel began once the atmosphere had been breached. She wouldn't be bothered. Mal would be recounting his heroics to Wash with Zoe shaking her head at the exaggerations. Jayne would be in his bunk, taking care of his guns. Inara would be in her shuttle. Book was in the middle of his morning prayers. Simon was with River, who he was still keeping unconscious until he was positive that the cryo hadn't affected her physical health. Nobody would come to see her.

Her head shot up as she heard a scream from another part of the ship. As quickly as she dared, she hurried to the infirmary where she found Mal already there with Simon watching River carefully.

"Just an honest brawl between folks," Mal was saying when he caught sight of Kaylee. He looked away.

"The Pond is here," River muttered absentmindedly.

Kaylee jumped slightly. Her old name was Pond, but if River was as psychic as Castiel said, it was no surprise that she would know details about her past. So long as the girl did not tell the others explicitly, Kaylee's position would not be compromised.

"There ain't no pond 'round here, girly," Mal said, drying his hands.

"Not that pond, the _Pond_," River stressed.

"Yeah, yeah," Mal said. "Whatever the difference may be."

He pushed past Kaylee and walked out. She looked after the Captain mournfully. It would take a long time to mend that relationship. She shook her head and looked at the remaining occupants of the room.

"How are you, River?" she asked kindly.

"Minds are playgrounds," River said, walking over to a table. Kaylee wasn't sure what it was, but one moment, River was all, or at least mostly, there and the next, the girl was gone. Kaylee moved quickly and grabbed the hand River was about to sweep across the table. River twisted her hand out of Kaylee's grasp violently. Kaylee ducked a wild lash and suddenly River was backing up into a corner of the room, clutching her head.

"No! Ipsa est! Est special! Ego eam nocere posse! No. No. No!" River shouted.*

"River. River!" Simon tried to shout over her, getting as close as he dared.

Latin. River was speaking in Latin. Damn. Kaylee hadn't brushed up on her Latin in years. She _really_ should've went over it again once Castiel had come to her. _Everything_ Christianity related was in Latin for some reason, even though Rome wasn't the first Religious area. And if it wasn't in Latin, it would be in Greek, Egyptian or some other dead language that were a pain in the butt to practice and keep up with. She searched her mind for anything to say.

"Pax!" Kaylee tried. "Pax! Et non nocuerunt mihi."*

River, trembling slightly, slowly looked up at Kaylee. Kaylee smiled kindly. "You're okay here, little one."

Simon looked between them. "What did you say to her? What did she say?"

"Just that she was alright," Kaylee said breezily.

"So now I'm surrounded by two geniuses," Simon muttered. He reached a hand out towards River. His sister tentatively placed her hand in his. "Are you okay now, River?"

"Okay-satisfactory but not exceptionally or especially good," River said quietly as she let herself be slowly pulled off the ground.

"Simon, would it be okay if I had a moment alone with River?" Kaylee asked, softly.

"Umm, sure," Simon agreed hesitantly. "Is that okay, River?"

"The Pond will not hurt me," River said absentmindedly, picking up a medical tool and playing with it.

"Of course not, _mei-mei_," Simon agreed, although he did not realize the true meaning of 'Pond'. He gently removed the tool from River's hand. "I'll be right outside if you need anything."

He shot Kaylee a concerned look before exiting.

"Okay, River," Kaylee sighed. "I don't even know where to start."

"Start at the very beginning. A very good place to start," River said with a small smile.

Kaylee chuckled. "Well, Julie Andrews was always a bit of an idol to me. It's no surprise that of the works that made it to this time period, Sound of Music was one of them."

"So start," the girl said, sitting down on the chair in the center of the room and swinging her legs childishly.

"Well, maybe, we could start with you calling me by my normal name," Kaylee suggested.

"A name is a name," River shrugged.

"But it is the name I go my now. I am hiding here. Do you understand that, Sweetie?" Kaylee asked.

"Yes, hiding. Hiding keeps you safe. We are all hiding," River muttered.

"But I am hiding more than the others. Can you help protect me?" Kaylee asked gently.

"Protect the Pond, yes," River smiled. "Kaylee is the name you bear."

"Okay, good," Kaylee sighed. "Second thing, do you understand who you are?"

"I am the Record," River said simply.

"Very good, _mei-mei_," Kaylee encouraged, hoping the endearment would help River.

"The Record is broken," River said sadly.

"I'm sorry to have to ask this, River, but do you know why the Alliance wanted you?" Kaylee prodded. She wasn't sure what she had expected, but River began shaking violently.

"No!" the girl shouted, clutching her head. "No, you can't! I won't tell!"

Simon ran back into the room, but Kaylee got there first.

"River? You're safe, _mei-mei_, you're safe," Kaylee murmured, clutching the trembling girl closely and sinking down to the floor. Unconsciously, she began to sing a lullaby that she used to sing for Jacob when he was small.

"_Sun goes down and we are here, together._

_Fireflies glow like a thousand charms._

_Stay with me, and you can dream, forever._

_Right here in my arms."_

As she sang, River began to calm down. Simon was standing awkwardly, watching the pair.

"You're good at that," Simon said, quietly.

"Thank you. It may surprise you, but I was a mother at one point. Although I would appreciate you not telling the rest of the crew at the moment. I don't need to give them another reason for them to mistrust me."

"If you don't mind me asking, what happened?" Simon asked, sitting down next to Kaylee.

"He died too young," Kaylee said. "His name was Jacob."

"A good name," Simon nodded. "It must've been terrible."

"One of the reasons I don't normally talk about him," Kaylee sighed. "You just seem to be in a situation where you could use somebody who knows how to be a parent. It can't be easy going from siblings to having to watch out for River."

"I would do anything for her," Simon asserted.

"I don't doubt it," Kaylee said with a small chuckle. "River didn't deserve this, just like my son didn't deserve to die so young."

"It's nice to be able to talk to someone who understands," Simon said.

"I'm always here if you need me," Kaylee assured him. "The rest of the crew may not trust me at the moment, but every secret I keep is for either their protection or mine. I had hoped that you could be one who would understand that."

"Secrets keep people safe," Simon grimaced. "Unfortunately, not all people can see that."

"Especially not friends," Kaylee sighed. She looked down at River in her arms and saw that the girl had fallen asleep. She shifted the girl in her arms and stood up, carrying River.

"She's light," Kaylee said as explanation for Simon's surprised look. She placed River gently on the table and patted her hair.

"She looks like she's fifteen again when she's sleeping," Simon said softly, smiling down at his sister's peaceful face.

Kaylee placed a gentle hand on Simon's shoulder. "Maybe, one day, we'll see who she was."

"But will she ever be okay again?" Simon asked.

"We don't know. But we can hope."

* * *

Kaylee growled under her breath. She knew that the job from Niska had been a bad idea. Even _Crowley_ was a bit scared of the guy. Nothing good ever came out of working for that guy. Now Mal and Zoe were trapped in Paradiso and Jayne had been hurt. Wash had parked Serenity in a canyon until they could figure out what to do. Everybody was gathered in the infirmary. Mainly, it was Jayne and Wash arguing about whether to continue to the rendezvous or try to rescue Mal and Zoe. She was sitting next to River quietly on one of the side bunks while Simon was working quickly and efficiently on Jayne. Book observed the commotion from a corner. She honestly wasn't paying too much attention, just trying to keep herself from ripping Jayne's head off. If the man's obsession with violence didn't get him killed, she sure would do him the favor by his ego.

"Won't stop. Won't ever stop," River interrupted suddenly. "They'll just keep coming until they get back what you took. Two by two, hands of blue. Two by two, hands of blue."

"How's about you shut that crazy mouth? Is that a fun game?" Jayne snarled.

"Jayne Cobbs! You shut your mouth!" Kaylee snapped, pulling River into a hug. She didn't really have time to question what River had said, but she would tell Castiel as soon as the angel visited once again.

"Yes, mother," Jayne sneered, but continued. "Now I'm in ruttin' charge here, and I'm tellin' you how it works. We don't get the goods to Niska on time, he'll make meat pies out of the lot of us. And I ain't walkin' into that."

"For the last freakin' time, you are not in charge, Jayne!" Kaylee shouted. The whole room quieted and stared at her, scared that she would take charge in a frightening show of authority like she had from Mal before.

"Kaylee…" Book said quietly.

_"To far. To far. Don't take it to far,"_ she chanted in her head, thankful that Book had given her warning. "Look, Mal would never leave any of us behind."

"Besides," Book said, taking over from Kaylee. "If the Captain's not there to finish it, if Niska finds out he's being held, and may speak as to who hired him… I think we're better off being a little late."

Kaylee stood up from the bunk quietly and left the room. She obviously could not deal with these sort of situations where authority was required. Her Kitsune side _urged_ her to take control, to be the predator that she should be, but she, Kaylee, would make sure that would not happen. She had not spent the past five centuries learning control and building her life just so that everything could be ruined. Especially now, when it mattered the most. She wandered up to the bridge and sat in the copilot's seat, looking out at the canyon. The planet was just another dust bowl in the universe. Nothing special about it, but there were people who depended on this land and people who lived their lives here.

"You know, some say that we see everything clearest in space, that our minds aren't clouded by small matters, but sometimes, it's the small things that count in a life," Wash said, coming up behind Kaylee.

"When did you get so wise?" Kaylee said with a small grin.

"I don't know. When did you suddenly become in charge?" Wash sighed, sitting down in his chair.

"I'm not in charge," Kaylee said quickly.

"You're even fooling yourself," Wash chuckled. "Kaylee, even if you can't see it, every word that you say carries weight now. I don't know where you were hiding her, but the Kaylee we've been seeing is the one who has been running the ship, whether Mal wants to admit it or not."

"Nobody can get that sort of control on this ship," Kaylee denied, hoping that what she was saying was true.

"Kaylee, ever since you took control from Mal and protected Simon, everybody has been terrified that you will try to do something like that again."

"I never wanted that," Kaylee said quietly.

"But you got it, and now you will have to deal with the consequences of that," Wash sighed. "People don't just suddenly have that sort of aura that you have out of the blue. You've been hiding this commanding side of yourself. You do it so _well_, Kaylee, you hide _yourself_ so well, but secrets always come out in the end.

Kaylee didn't answer, but turned instead to the door where Jayne was hobbling in.

"That's it! We've waited long enough. Let's get this bird in the air."

Kaylee shot Wash a look, plainly saying that whatever authority she had didn't truly exist. His return expression was clearly a _"It's __Jayne__"_.

The same argument quickly broke out again between Wash and Jayne while Simon, who had followed Jayne in, was trying to get his patient to sit down. Book and Inara entered fairly close behind.

"You know what the chain of command is?" Jayne shouted. "It's the chain I go get and beat you with until you understand who's in ruttin' command here. Now we're finishing this deal, and then maybe maybe we'll come back for those morons who got themselves caught. You can't change that by getting all... bendy."

Everybody looked at him in confusion as he started breathing harder. He began to grab at nothing in front of him

"You've got the light.. from the console.. keep you, lift you up. They shine like… little angels…"

And before all of them, he collapsed to the floor.

"Did he just go crazy and fall asleep?" Wash asked.

"I told him to sit down," Simon shrugged.

"You doped him," Kaylee said with a small smirk. "Nice job."

"Thanks, I guess. It was suppose to kick in a good deal sooner. I just didn't feel comfortable with him in charge."

"None of us did," Kaylee assured the doctor. "We would never leave Mal and Zoe."

"They probably got pinched somewhere," Wash said.

"Well, we can't just waltz in there," Kaylee snipped.

"Someone respectable might be able to," Book suggested.

"What?" Inara asked as everybody turned to look at her.

* * *

"How did it go?" Kaylee asked as Inara exited her shuttle.

"She hit me," Mal complained. "What the..?"

"He was heavy," Kaylee shrugged, referring to Jayne, unconscious on the floor. She wasn't going to even try to make him more comfortable. The jerk was fine where he was.

"Captain, I've got the engine running, we're good to go," Wash said.

"We're not going," Mal said shortly.

"What changed your mind?" Kaylee asked with a feeling of dread. She _knew_ dealing with Niska wouldn't turn out well.

"Those people are dying," Zoe explained as she began to grab the cargo. "They need this medicine more than we need the money."

"Niska's not going to be happy," Book warned. "He's likely to shoot y'all on the spot."

"We'll take that chance," Mal said. "We'll just return the money. If he don't accept it, I guess we're not coming back."

"Are you going to gamble with _our _lives?" Inara asked, nodding at the ramp.

Mal spun around to see one of Niska's goons coming up the ramp.

"You didn't make the rendezvous," the large man said in a jumbled accent.

"Ran into a few complications," Mal said shortly. His stance clearly stating that he was ready for a fight.

"You were thinking of taking Mr. Niska's money and his property, maybe," the man said, sneering.

"Ah, interestingly, neither," Mal said, fending off the accusation. Kaylee shifted. She was not comfortable with this standoff. She couldn't let anybody get hurt. But at the same time, if she were to take control of the situation once more, Mal might kick her off the boat for good, creating a whole new set of problems.

"I don't understand," the man said.

"Yeah, look. Here's what it is. Deal's off. We changed our minds," Mal explained

"You entered into an arrangement with Mr. Niska. There is no mind changing."

"I'm afraid that's where you're wrong," Mal said with a nervous laugh. "We just... we can't take this job, so you just relax. We'll get you all the money Niska gave us up front, you return it to him, and we'll call it even."

"There is no even," the man said, threateningly.

"Is that right?" Mal asked.

Kaylee could see the man tensing before he moved. She grabbed a metal bar behind her and threw it at the knife sailing through the air towards Mal. The knife Niska's man had thrown was hit right out of the air. Guns were immediately pulled out and a fight began between the two groups. But she had not missed Mal's surprised and suspicious look when the knife had been stopped from hitting him. She lingered in the corner. If it looked like somebody would be killed, she would help, but this was not her fight. She could not take over the jobs of every person on this ship. It wouldn't be fair to make others feel as pointless as she knew Mal felt.

Less than a minute later, Mal was about to be taken down. Kaylee was just about to intervene when a loud shot rang out. The large man standing over Mal fell to the ground, clutching his leg. Mal's face jerked immediately up to the rafters where Jayne was holding a smoking gun, his jaw hanging unnaturally from the sedative.

"I was aiming for his head."

Kaylee let out a small chuckle. The fight was over. The rest of the crew began to tie Niska's men up, but Kaylee chose instead to walk back to the infirmary where River would still be resting. On the way, Mal caught her arm.

"That's strike two, Kaylee, for your gives when it comes to your weirdness," he muttered threateningly. "Get one more, and you'll be off of this boat."

He walked away, leaving Kaylee frozen, staring at his retreating back.

***She is the one! She is special! I cannot hurt her!**

****Peace! You have not hurt me.**

**Yes, I took a lullaby from a barbie movie...**

**So here we have it! Things are going to be changing for Kaylee very soon... What do I mean by that? You'll have to wait and see:) Again, I'm so sorry for how late this chapter is. I can't wait for Thanksgiving where I can sit down and knock out a good few chapters and not feel so behind! Remember, please favorite/follow and review!**


	13. The Invitation

**Welcome one and all to the next chapter of this story! I'd like to say right off that this chapter is shorter than normal, but I will be posting twice during Thanksgiving break! Thank you to Mandolarian Knight for following and to Chinagirl18 for favoriting and following. Big shout out to my beta, KatsatheGraceling, for keeping me sane. Love yah! And now, onto the story**

Kaylee grinned as she nearly sprinted to the front doors of the base. It had been too long.

"Van, Dexter," she greeted hurriedly at the door as she moved passed the guards. They shouted happy replies back to her, but she was already gone. She came to a door and pushed it open without a thought as to what could be behind.

"Crowley!"

The demon looked up from his desk and a grin spread across his face. "Amy! What are you doing here?"

"What, no 'how are you?'" Kaylee pouted. She went up to him and kissed him on the cheek, knowing that the demon was not a fan of hugs.

"My apologies, Darling," Crowley apologized with a mock bow as he stood up and led Kaylee to a private room off his office. "I just _never_ expected you to be anything less than _perfect_."

"Shut up!" Kaylee giggled. "Jeez, I've missed you."

"I actually get some silence around here now," Crowley teased. Kaylee punched him in the arm and he faked being hurt.

"You missed me too, you pushover," Kaylee laughed.

"But truly, Amy, what are you doing here?" Crowley asked.

"Well, Mal is on the lookout for a new job and decided to stop and refuel here," Kaylee explained. "We got nearly got tagged by the Alliance _again_ a bit ago so we're not trying to get into too much trouble."

"What happened?" Crowley sighed.

"It wasn't our fault!" Kaylee protested. "We were flying around when we came up on a wreck floating in space. To make a _very_ long story short, the ship had been attacked by Reavers. We found one survivor, but the madness was too much and he turned into a Reaver, as well. In the meantime, an Alliance ship had found us and thought that _we _had attacked the ship so we all got taken aboard. They also began to suspect that it was our ship that River and Simon had gotten away on."

Crowley nodded at the mention of the siblings. Kaylee had written a note and put it on the food tray that Crowley used to send all of Kaylee's… normal nourishment to her, so he knew all about their current predicament. "They were not caught, were they?"

"No, Simon's a genius," Kaylee said with a fond smirk. "He and River put on space suits and hung to the outside of the ship. Anyway, they were interviewing all of us, I pretty much just confused my person by saying a bunch of mechanical words that any halfway decent mechanic would know is a load of bull, when there was this emergency because the guy from before, the one who turned into the Reaver, was on the loose. Mal ended up saving the Alliance commander so they let us go."

"The idiotic Alliance still don't believe in Reavers, do they?" Crowley sighed.

"I don't know why," Kaylee grimaced. "It's not like they don't leave behind enough destruction."

"And how was River through this?" Crowley asked.

"Surprisingly calm," Kaylee answered. "She's been having so many nightmares lately that maybe she didn't realize that this wasn't one. Mal ended up letting me have a room right next to hers so I can get to her more easily when she wakes up in the middle of the night, shouting in Latin. She never says anything rational, but I'm scared that I'm just not putting things together properly. I think that she says everything for a reason, but I can't understand her."

"But she's alright for now," Crowley confirmed. "How about you and the rest of the crew. How are things there?"

"I'm still on my last warning from Mal," Kaylee mourned. "Things are going smoother between me and Wash, but Zoe is still watching me a bit more than I like, but she's always been the more suspicious one. Inara has been treating me normally, but again, you can tell she's watching still. Inara is the one I'm worried about. She has an interesting talent of making you not realize how much you've said until you've already said it. The other day, I was talking about languages and I nearly slipped that I had been to most countries on Earth-that-was! I mean, how on Earth does something like that almost come out?!"

"Sounds like she's an interesting character," Crowley chuckled. "I didn't really see much of her last time you all were here for the wedding. Speaking of, do you want me to arrange for some rooms here?"

"I don't think we're staying that long," Kaylee said, apologetically. "But I'll give the offer."

"If Mal wants to come by here, I've got a job for him if he wants it," Crowley offered.

"I'll let him know," Kaylee assured him. "I better get going. They knew that I was going to come say hi, but but they'll be expecting me back soon. And if there is one thing I'm doing lately, it's fulfilling expectations. I've got to run by my room on the way out to grab a few things. Maybe sometime later I can bring River and Simon over and you can meet them."

"Sounds good, Amy," Crowley smiled. They stood up and he kissed her cheek. "Don't be a stranger, okay?"

"I'll try," Kaylee smiled. She left the room and followed the familiar track back to her room. It was exactly the same as the last time she had been there. She grabbed a few tools that she wanted along with a photograph album that she had semi kept up with over the _many_ years. Most of the pictures were of her and Jacob and Crowley or of places that she had visited while she was touring around Earth-that-was. She figured that Book might like to see it. He now knew that she had been a mother at one point too in addition to her age, but he was standing firm on his point of not wanting to know much. She had actually been spending a good amount of time with Simon, too. He hadn't been around her before to feel betrayed now when she started behaving differently. And, once he got past his awkward phase, he was actually quite charming.

She left with her few things in a bag. It was just a short walk back the _Serenity_ since Crowley had let them land in one of his reserved spaces. She stopped by her new room and put her things down before going to find Mal. A few short minutes later, she found him exiting Inara's shuttle, muttering under his breath.

"Captain!" she called to get his attention as she walked up.

"What is it, Kaylee?" he asked wearily.

Kaylee had to stop the grimace that wanted to cross her face at his tone. "I just wanted to let you know that Crowley has a job for you, if you want it."

"I'll think about it," he said noncommittally.

"Mal!" she called once again as he started to walk off. He stopped, but didn't turn around. She continued on softly. "Please don't let my secrets be the undoing of your… business. Crowley will always give you a fair job, and right now, you need one."

From what Kaylee could see, his angry shoulders relaxed slightly, although he still didn't face her. "I'll be there in half an hour."

She sighed as he walked off. It would seem that she might never gain his trust again.

* * *

She truly didn't know how on Earth she had come to be here. When Mal had come to her, saying for her to get into her best dress, she hadn't been expecting him to drag her along to a fancy party.

She was completely out of dress when it came to this party. How was she to know that fashion had receded ten centuries? Her dress was a beautiful turquoise color with purple flowers. While it would've worked on the red carpet in her time, it stood out of place with the flowing dresses that were apparently the style now.

She stood in the corner of the room, watching the girls twirl and the men spin. Several men had asked to dance with her, but she had turned them all down. Mal was off talking to the man that he was apparently going to get the job from. She really wasn't sure why Mal had chosen her to go with him. Okay, she did, but it still didn't make sense. Zoe was married, River was crazy, Inara was otherwise engaged (at the same party, nonetheless), so that left her to play the companion.

She watched Inara and her partner walk over to Mal before Inara and Mal left the group to dance. Kaylee smiled as she watched the two of them together. They couldn't seem to realize that all their arguments were just hiding their feelings. She continued to watch them as Inara's man for the night went over and barged in. She hurried over as she saw the tension rising and arrived just in time to watch Mal slug the other man in the face.

"There has been a challenge!" one of the challenges gentleman announced.

Kaylee cursed under her breath. No matter how out of touch she had become with the culture now a days, she knew what a challenge meant. Like the fashion, the way for upper class men to solve a problem had receded a few centuries as well. She watched Mal fumble as he realized that this wasn't a gun or fist fight, but a _sword duel_.

"You'll be put up in lodgings for the night, so you don't disappear. I wouldn't blame you, incidentally. Wing may be a spoiled dandy, but he's an expert swordsman. He's killed a dozen men with a longblade," the man who Mal had been attempting to make deal with said.

"I'll second him," Kaylee said immediately. "If that man has an issue fighting a girl, he can get over it."

"Young lady, I don't believe you know what you're getting yourself into," the man said.

"Believe me, I do," Kaylee said seriously. "I'm afraid I don't know your name, nor the man that I will most likely be fighting."

"I'm called Harrow," the man said. "And the man that your friend foolishly challenged is called Atherton.

"Wait, wait, wait! What does a second mean?" Mal asked.

Kaylee glared at him. "It means that if your stupid butt gets killed, I get avenge you."

She stormed off. She was not bound by the rules to stay, only Mal was, so she hurried back to the base and informed Crowley of what was happening. He assured her that he would inform the crew of what was happening. He also graciously handed over a couple of his best swords, forged (literally) in the fires of Hell. She thanked him and hurried back to the rooms where Mal was staying.

"Come on," Kaylee said once she broke through the door. She had managed to sneak around the guard, but she wasn't sure if anybody was going to walk in.

"Kaylee! What are you doing here?" Mal questioned. He had one of the offered swords in his hands and was practicing on a pillar.

"I'm here to help you, jerk," Kaylee sneered. "I can't _believe_ how much of an idiot you were! Sword fighting is _not_ as easy as you seem to think. I'm going to try my best to prepare you for what is awaiting you tomorrow."

**So how was it? There is a link to Kaylee's dress on my profile page (or you can just look up Jewel Staite at the Serenity premier). Also, I have a poll on my profile for whether Kaylee and Simon should get together or not. Please go vote! I think that those are all my notes for this chapter. I'll see all of you next week!**


	14. The Duel

**Umm, yeah. So... Hi. I'm _really_ sorry about not having this out on Sunday. My life is super busy at the moment. Currently I'm in two productions(Grease at my school and the Nutcracker with my dance company) and both performances are in the next couple weeks so I have been in a million and one rehearsals. Aside from that, I'd like to thank MrsDoctorStark for favoriting and MonsterSlut for doing everything! Seriously, dude, you're ****awesome! Thanks for your kind reviews! As always, big shout out to my beta, KatsatheGraceling. And away we go!**

"_I'm going to try my best to prepare you for what is awaiting you tomorrow."_

"Why would you help me?" Mal asked. "And how do you even know how to sword fight?"

"How I know doesn't matter," Kaylee shrugged. "What's important is making sure your ass survives tomorrow. Go on. Take a swing at me."

"I'm not going to fight you, Kaylee," Mal disagreed.

"Go on, _Captain_," Kaylee mocked. She tossed the second of Crowley's swords to Mal, who fumbled and nearly dropped it. "Just try to touch me."

Mal gave a half-hearted swing at Kaylee that she easily sidestepped.

"Put a bit more energy into it!" Kaylee demanded. She feinted to the right before twisting quickly and poking Mal gently in the ribs. "You're dead."

"Kaylee, I'm not doing this with you," Mal whined.

"What? Too afraid to hit a girl?" Kaylee laughed in Mal's face.

"I'm not afraid to..." Mal tried to deny.

"Then go ahead," Kaylee invited, opening her arms with her sword hanging loosely from one hand. Just as she suspected, Mal tried to go for the most novice move: a charge. Kaylee even had time to fit a sigh between sidestepping again and tapping Mal on the butt with the flat of her sword. He got mad. Kaylee didn't know if his temper would be a blessing or a curse in this fight. On one hand, it would make him clumsy. On the other, Kaylee knew that Mal was always strongest when his emotions ran high. Mal spun around and tried to charge her once more.

"You can't just keep hoping for a lucky hit here," Kaylee coached. "Charging leaves yourself wide open for a counterattack. Test me, find a weakness. Poke and prod my defenses."

"I'm trying," Mal grunted as he swung hard from the shoulder.

"Speed is more important than strength," Kaylee instructed. Mal went for her left shoulder again before swinging to her right hip. Kaylee block it easily, but grinned anyway.

"There we go," Kaylee encouraged. "Keep doing that."

"But you blocked it anyways," Mal scowled. "Didn't do me much good."

"But it's getting there. One more time."

They did another two bouts before they were interrupted.

"Mal? What are... Oh."

Inara walked into the room, her eyes going back and forth between the panting and sweating Mal and the barely fazed Kaylee. "I guess I wasn't the first one to get this idea."

"Hello, Inara," Kaylee greeted.

"Inara," Mal greeted between pants.

"She's been driving you hard," Inara observed.

"He wouldn't be half bad if I had a year or two," Kaylee commented.

"A year or two?!" Mal exclaimed. "But I nicked you in the last round!"

"My fault," Kaylee admitted. "I started to let my guard down."

"I suppose I'm not needed," Inara said and started to bow out of the room but Kaylee threw out a hand to stop her.

"Actually, you could really help here. I'm assuming that you know how to duel?"

"Of course," Inara nodded, slightly offended.

"You'd also know the fighting style of these upper class aristocrats," Kaylee said nodding to herself. She grabbed Mal's sword and threw it to Inara who caught it easily. "Can you let me see your fighting style?"

"I'd be happy to help," Inara nodded.

"You can move easily enough?" Kaylee asked, looking at Inara's light dress. The Companion nodded. "Mal, watch. Try to pick up anything that you can. I've been teaching you how I was taught, but Inara will fight more like your opponent tomorrow. Try to see my strategies."

The man nodded and sat down with a glass of water, drinking greedily.

Inara and Kaylee positioned themselves opposite each other. They began circling slowly, getting a feel for how the other moved. Inara was light on her feet, balancing on her toes instead of bending her knees to get more power from the ground. That made for a quick, but less powerful, fighting style. Kaylee moved first, a simple jab at the shoulder. Inara's sword flashed up and parried, almost casually.

"Not bad," Kaylee commented. Inara made a jab back and Kaylee spun out of the way instead of blocking.

"Not bad yourself," Inara said back.

They continued like this for the next minute, feeling each other out. Kaylee suddenly whipped out a quick combo of moves. Inara was startled but managed to block or avoid all of the moves. Light and quick, Kaylee decided. Inara definitely used a quick style, so Atherton's would most likely be the same. Of course, he was also male so he would likely be a little bit stronger and likely a little heavier.

Inara startled _her _when she continued the harsher fighting that Kaylee had started, so she responded in kind. _Five minutes_. That's how long it took for Kaylee to finally get the upper hand on Inara. She was rusty in her swordsmanship. Never the less, she did beat her.

Inara gasped for breath as her sword was knocked out of her hand.

"I win," Kaylee announced with a grin.

"You are one of the best I've ever had the honor of crossing blades with," Inara said formally with a nod of her head.

"I'd enjoy another match sometime," Kaylee grinned before turning to Mal. "So? Did you get anything?"

"Other than the fact that you two are the scariest women I know?" Mal shrugged. "Nothin' much. It was too quick."

Kaylee and Inara gave each other a proud grin before looking back at Mal.

"Well now you've got some idea of Atherton's level," Inara said.

"So I've got no chance of winning tomorrow?" Mal grimaced.

"I've got a way out," Inara offered.

"I'm not running!" Mal exclaimed, offended.

"Didn't think so," Kaylee chuckled. "I'll leave you two alone. There's not much more I can do for you. Don't forget to catch some sleep. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Goodnight, Kaylee," Inara smiled and Mal gave a small wave.

Kaylee wandered back to Crowley's base slowly. There was very little chance that Mal would beat Atherton tomorrow, but she had to hope. She had tried the crash course in swordplay, but it took _years_ to master. Mal would just have to try his best.

She collapsed on her bed in her room and groaned. There was a quiet knock on her door.

"What are the chances?" Crowley asked quietly, coming in and sitting beside Kaylee.

"He's a hothead, but a good fighter. Whether that transfers to tomorrow's fight remains to be seen," Kaylee mumbled, her arm thrown across her face.

"I met the prophetess," Crowley said, changing the subject.

"How'd you like her?" Kaylee said with a smirk.

"She's the most interesting person I've met in the past few centuries," Crowley chuckled.

"Ain't she just?" Kaylee said, channeling Mal.

"She would've made a wonderful prophet, if sane."

"She has her moments of clarity," Kaylee argued.

"She does," Crowley conceded. "However, she is not always clear as to what she is saying or doing. She would do better if kept around people who knew. I'm afraid that she will say the wrong thing to the wrong person."

"She has not so far!" Kaylee said angrily.

"But how long will it remain that way?" Crowley shouted. "She would be much safer if kept here!"

"I can't do that! We still don't know exactly what's after her. How did the Alliance figure out about her? Humans don't just know how to draw archaic symbols that keep both angels and demons out. There is something more going on here. I'm sure of it. Until we can figure out what, we are keeping on the move."

"I can protect her," Crowley muttered.

"We don't know that," Kaylee said, a bit more calmly.

"She is the most precious human I've met since the Winchesters. I just want her to be safe," Crowley grimaced.

"We all do," Kaylee said gently. "But River is so much more than just the Prophet, she's a human being, too."

"I understand. She's become important to you, too. I can see that."

Kaylee smiled. It was true. River had become like the daughter she had never had. "I would do anything for her."

"Even if that means giving up your place on the crew?"

"Even that," Kaylee said without hesitation.

"I just wanted to make sure that you were prepared to make that sacrifice," Crowley said.

Kaylee gave him a small, sad, smile. "I am. I wasn't sure when Castiel first gave me this mission, or even when I first met her, but now I would give everything up in a heartbeat. She has become a part of my family and part of my heart."

"And what of her brother?"

"He would do anything as well."

"Do you believe he should be told of his sister's destiny?" Crowley asked.

"I will only tell if I have to," Kaylee decided. "I do not believe that he could handle this right now. He is still too innocent for the normal world, let alone the world that River is involved with."

"Agreed."

* * *

The next morning found a small group of people gathered together where Mal and Atherton's duel was to take place.

"Remember what I said: speed, not strength," Kaylee reminded Mal as she handed him his sword. She glanced over at Atherton, who was swinging his sword around and grinning cockily. "Kick that man's ass for me, yeah?"

"That's the plan," Mal said before turning to speak to Inara.

"Thank you for coming," Kaylee said as Crowley came up beside her.

"I'd never miss a chance to see a rich kid get what he deserves."

Kaylee laughed as they watched Mal and his adversary face each other.

"Quick, quick, quick," Kaylee muttered as the duelists began fighting. Mal drew the first blood, but Kaylee could tell that Atherton wasn't trying that hard. He wanted Mal to get arrogant. Judging by Inara and Harrow's worried conversation, they could see it too. Atherton got the next hit when Mal swung wildly at him. Kaylee was confused. She knew that Mal could do a lot better than that. Atherton stood back and put his arms behind his back.

"What is he doing?" Kaylee muttered as Mal geared up to charge. Right before he ran, she caught a little bit of a smirk. In a flash of a second, she saw exactly what he had done. Mal had faked being so much worse than he was so _Atherton_ would get more cocky. Mal had acted just as Atherton had expected so he would be given this opportunity. Mal ran towards his opponent. In a split of a second, Mal twisted around just as Atherton did. Atherton, expecting to hit Mal, lost his balance when he didn't encounter any resistance. Mal, on the other hand, avoided the opposite sword and managed to knock it out of Atherton's hand. Continuing the movement, Mal swept his sword down, knocking Atherton onto the ground.

Kaylee and Inara exchanged a relieved smile. It was over.

**This was just finishing up that episode, but the next one will be more my normal length. I should have that posted on Friday (no rehearsals. hallelujah!) and another next Sunday. If I disappear in the next two weeks, you know where I am: stuck at a theater:/ Anyway, please remember to follow/favorite/review and have a Happy Thanksgiving!**


	15. The Kidnapping

**Note to self: Do not promise to post two chapters during a break you do not have. *Sigh* I'm sorry guys. My break was not really a break at all. But here is a normal length chapter for your enjoyment. As always, thanks to my beta, KatsatheGraceling, for being the best friend I could've asked for. She has started the slow process of uploading her stories on here, so go check her out! I'll be uploading this and, perhaps my others, onto Ao3 soon. So if you see it there, it really is me! Now, onto the story!**

"So has Mal finally gotten over those superiority complex issues he's been having?" Inara asked innocently as she and Kaylee browsed the little shop they were in.

"You'd know better than me. You're the one he talks to," Kaylee said nonchalantly as she picked up a plate and examined it before setting it down again.

"You mean the one he complains to," Inara said, rolling her eyes. "I was just asking since he hasn't mentioned you lately."

"Well, he does owe me one," Kaylee said cooly. "I still can't believe how much of an idiot he was over the whole thing. If you want to go to an aristocratic party, act like you belong or you're just going to get in trouble."

"Sounds like you know," Inara commented. She picked up a wooden carving for Kaylee to look at. Kaylee shook her head and Inara put it down.

"I just know people," Kaylee denied. "You start to pick out patterns after a while."

"Patterns that you don't seem to fit into," Inara accused.

Kaylee sighed. There it was. Inara was finally confronting her. She had been waiting for their game of cat and mouse to end for two years now.

"You want to do this here?"

"Is there a better place?" Inara asked. "I'm sick and tired of this, Kaylee. You have been a good friend, but there are too many secrets with you. I didn't want to do this with the crew around and we left Persephone in quite the hurry, so it's going to be now."

"I don't know what you expect of me," Kaylee said, keeping her voice unemotional.

"I expect some semblance of the truth," Inara said angrily, her serene attitude slipping.

Kaylee looked Inara straight in the eyes. She wasn't sure what the Companion saw there, but it made her back up a few feet. "Inara, whatever I do or do not tell you, it is for the best of the crew. The knowledge I keep is dangerous. _I_ am dangerous. Frankly, I do not care if you do not trust me. I am doing the best with what I am given. So do _not_ doubt my resolve to protect the crew."

"You're… protecting us?" Inara asked hesitantly.

Kaylee just nodded.

"Do not misunderstand me," Inara started. "But if you're so dangerous and truly only wish to protect the crew, why do you stay?"

Kaylee hesitated. "I cannot say."

Inara glared. "So you are telling me that you want to protect us, but you can't tell me why you can't just leave?"

"Do you want me to go?" Kaylee asked, refusing to let herself get angry.

"I don't know!" Inara shouted as she turned away from Kaylee. The store owner looked over but Kaylee shook her head.

"Inara?" Kaylee asked. She walked around to the other side of the Companion. She was startled to see tears in her eyes. "Are you all right?"

"I don't know! I don't know," Inara repeated, more quietly this time. "Why, Kaylee? I want to be friends with you so desperately, but you make this impossible! How can a secret be so important? Why must you sacrifice everything for it? Why can't you just be normal?"

Kaylee glared, giving up trying to be rational at this point. "You don't know anything about me. You don't know what I've been through or what I have given up. And you know what? I do not owe anything to you or to the crew. I am scared! I have no clue what I'm doing at the moment. If I could leave right now, I would. But I can't. I have a mission right now, one that could potentially lead to the destruction of the human race if done wrong. So yes, I'm a little on edge. I'm a little different than what you know to be the little mechanic of Kaylee Frye. In fact, that's not even my true name. But who cares, right? Because all that matters is how much I've hurt your feelings!"

Inara was silent, staring at Kaylee after her rant. Slowly, the Companion opened her mouth. "I don't even know you anymore."

She turned and walked out before Kaylee could say anything, pushing past Simon and River as she did so without so much as a sorry. Simon stared after her.

"Is she okay?"

"It's fine," Kaylee waved off. "We just had an argument."

"Some argument," Simon muttered. "I've never seen her that angry."

"You've never seen her and Mal after one of their big arguments," Kaylee said with a half laugh, but unfortunately, what Simon had said was true. She had never seen Inara that angry either. But she couldn't pretend anymore. She was in way over her head here. Her rant there could've potentially ruined any relationship she ever had with Inara again, but it was worth it. It _had_ to be worth it. She had given up everything she had hoped her life could be for this stupid mission. Not that she regretted helping River, but did she not deserve to be left in peace sometime? She would do what she had to, but after this, she would change her name again and create a new life for herself. Any reminder of this life would likely bring tears and the whole snob fest.

"So what brings you two out here?" Kaylee asked, clearing her head from thoughts of the future.

"Oh, we're just trying something new," Simon said as he hurried to take one of the trinkets out of River's hands.

"So new includes bringing her out in public?" Kaylee teased.

"Do you think anybody would recognize her?" Simon asked worriedly.

Kaylee laughed. "Simon, we're in the middle of nowhere. I doubt they've heard anything from the Alliance in months. We're fine."

"Oh, good," Simon sighed. "No! River!"

"She's fine!" Kaylee laughed as Simon wrestled River for a plate. "She may not always be clear, but you can normally catch it before she goes destructive."

"Yeah, easy for you," Simon glared. "You're the only person that can see when she's about to go off the edge!"

"I am?" Kaylee asked, confused. "I thought that you could, too."

"No," Simon denied, shaking his head. "I only catch it because I'm always careful. Loathe as I am to admit it, you probably know her better than I do now."

"That could never be true," Kaylee said with a small smile in Simon's direction. "You're her brother. I'll never be more important than her family."

"Yeah," Simon sighed, but he did return her smile. He looked around. "River?"

Kaylee looked around as well. "Where did she go?"

"I don't know!" Simon panicked. "River!"

He ran out the door with Kaylee close behind him. Where could she had gone?

"Wait, Simon, I hear music," Kaylee called.

Simon looked confused at first, but then his face cleared. "She loves to _dance_!"

They both ran towards the sound of the flute music, under an alley, and outside again to a stage where a small village celebration was occurring. Simon and Kaylee ran up to the front of the stage to watch River join in the dancing. They smiled at each other. The girl was having the time of her life, maybe for the first time since she had been taken by the Alliance.

"Come on, Simon!" Kaylee laughed and dragged the doctor onto the stage.

"What? No. Kaylee!" Simon fumbled as he was spun around by Kaylee.

"Have some fun!" Kaylee grinned. River danced over to them as Simon spun awkwardly.

"Hi!" she giggled.

"Hello to you, too!" Kaylee laughed. She left Simon and spun away with River. This was the most free she had felt in such a long time. She lost track of time as the music continued. But then, River stumbled.

"River? River!" Kaylee called and pushed her way through the dancers. The girl screamed.

"No! River!"

Kaylee made her way to the girl.

"River, you're okay," Kaylee murmured to the trembling girl.

"Not okay. Not okay!" River muttered as she rocked back and forth. "Hurts!"

"What hurts?" Kaylee asked. She looked around. Where was Simon? He would've run to River as soon as he saw that something was wrong.

River shook her head. "Shepherd Simon! Shepherd Simon!" she called.

"Where's Simon? Why is he a Shepherd?" Kaylee asked frantically.

All of a sudden, River was calm. She stood up and wandered off the stage.

"River?" Kaylee called cautiously, but the girl did not respond, only continued walking. Kaylee stood up and followed her, staying a couple yards back. She heard a commotion up ahead. She hid behind a tree. It was painfully obvious now that Simon had been kidnapped.

"Simon!" River said gleefully.

"Bring her!" one of the men demanded.

"Damnit!" Kaylee cursed under breath. She couldn't take all of these men down, but it would be better if she went along willingly than if the siblings were left on their own. She ran out in the view of the kidnappers. "River!"

"Another one! Bring her, too," another one of the men grunted.

She was corralled over and her wrist were tied with a length of rope. They were all shoved through the woods. Simon opened his mouth, but Kaylee stepped on his foot. He glared at her, but she just shook her head and looked up at the sky. She knew the engines of her baby anywhere, and she had heard them approaching just a few seconds ago. Simon looked up as well just in time to see _Serenity_ leave atmo.

"They left us!" he whispered harshly. Kaylee nodded grimly. With her and Mal being completely at odds still, it wasn't a surprise that he would leave her one strike too soon. And, unfortunately, she had just chased off her biggest supporter in Inara. Book would try to convince the Captain, but his word pulled little weight. Zoe and Wash would be uncomfortable, but would go along with what Mal said. Jayne just wouldn't care. They were stuck here. There was always hope, but she couldn't see it at the moment.

* * *

Kaylee went around the small room, gently administering medicine or cleaning the wounds of each of the patients. Whatever she had been expecting of her kidnappers, it was not this. This small village in the middle of nowhere, struggling to survive. They were in desperate need for _any_ specialist or professionals that could help them. While she didn't approve of their methods, she couldn't deny the sick and hurt help. So she, along with Simon, worked their way slowly through the infirmary. The woman, Doralee, who was already there, explained each person's story, and their families' stories, and their friends' stories. Kaylee had to smile. The community was so close-knit that they were all practically family.

"Do you mind if I walk around?" Kaylee asked Doralee after most of the patients were taken care of. "I'd like to see more of the town."  
"So long as you don't go anywhere," the woman smiled.

"Why would I? You still have my friends here," Kaylee smiled, but on the inside was struggling not to shout. She may want to help this community, but that didn't change the fact that she had been kidnapped.

"So long as you understand."

Kaylee walked outside and started to wander down the street. Many people called out greetings as she walked by. Her and Simon's status as doctor's had made her an instant celebrity. She wandered out of the main town and into the woods. It was true what she had said to Doralee, she wouldn't leave. There was no way they would be able to sneak out with how watchful the villagers were and besides— where would they go? With _Serenity_ gone, they no longer had a safe place. Loathe as she was to admit it, hanging around here for a while would not be that bad of an idea. It was remote and unassuming. The Alliance would never guess that there would be two refugees out here. She would need to set up protection, of course. She mused to herself. Should she put symbols up against demons and angels? She supposed that she should. There was something freaky going on with the Alliance. Who were the people that took River in the first place? However, if she did put up protection, neither Castiel nor Crowley would be able to get in contact with her. The second was particularly problematic. Not only would he freak, but her food source would be cut off as well. A village this small wouldn't have enough people dying naturally for her normal intake. She would have to spread some feelers out.

She turned as she heard quiet footsteps behind her to find River.

"Hi, Sweetie," Kaylee smiled. "What are you doing out here?"

"Sweet!" River grinned as she pointed to some berries.

"Do you want some help? Kaylee asked as she kneeled beside the girl.

River nodded eagerly and held out her skirt where she had been placing the berries.

"Do you like it here, _mei-mei_?" Kaylee asked.

"Quiet," River answered.

"I guess it can be quieter than the ship," Kaylee laughed.

"No, quiet," River frowned, tapping her head. "They are quiet."

Kaylee's brow furrowed. "My future is quiet?"

River nodded. "No fighting. No running. Peace."

Kaylee smiled gently. "Do you like it quiet?"

River considered the question. "For now."

With that, the girl stood up and started wandering back towards the town, her skirt full of berries. Kaylee frowned. Shouldn't River like the peace after everything she had been through? She didn't realize how long she had been sitting there thinking, until it was dark already, so she sighed and stood up, brushing her dirty hands on her already dirty pants. She was nearly to the main part of town when she heard the sound of raised voices and a bell ringing. She ran to go find Simon and River. She did find them, but, unfortunately, they were also the source of the commotion.

"Burn the witch!" people screamed.

"No!" Simon yelled right back as he struggled to get to his sister. "Take me instead. Take my life for hers!"

"God commands it," the Patron of the town said firmly.

"God does not condemn killing innocents!" Kaylee shouted, butting her way into the middle of the crowd.

The patron glared at her. "If you do not stand out of the way, you shall be counted as an accomplice and burned along side her."

"How would you know what God wants?" Kaylee demanded. "You have no idea what you're talking about!"

"And you do?" the Patron sneered in her ear quietly. He push past her and moved to tie River up on the pyre.

Kaylee cursed under her breath. Now would be a really good time for Mal to swoop in and save the day. He always did. He was always there to save his crew. She looked up to the sky hopefully; listened for any sign of her baby's engines. But there was nothing. No sound, no ship. They were truly gone, and she was on her own.

**Don't kill me! I promise, this is not the last we've scene of the _Serenity_ crew! I also wanted to remind you all that I have the poll still up for a Kaylee/Simon relationship. At this point, it's looking like a no, but I'd still like to hear your opinion! As always, please favorite/follow/review! See you next week!**_  
_


	16. The breakdown

**Hello everybody and welcome to the next chapter! As always, big shout out to my beta, KatsatheGraceling, for being the best-est friend in the world!**

"Stop! Stop!" Kaylee shouted, struggling against her captors. Nobody listened to her. "Screw this."

She lashed out with her foot behind her and was satisfied to hear it connect with somebody's leg, along with the accompanying yell. She spun, wrenching her hands out of the grasp of the men. Punch, kick, spin. The movements that she had not practiced for so long came back to her as she tried to make her way over to River. It was going so well, something had to go wrong. She spun, sweeping the legs out from under a man. She twisted, letting the movement carry her elbow into the stomach of an opponent. She—she hurt. She looked down. Blood was flowing out of her stomach. Her eyes wide, she looked up to see what she had missed. The patron, standing there holding a smoking gun, was the last thing she saw before she collapsed.

* * *

_"So explain again this whole immortality thing," Kaylee demanded as she sat with Crowley at her home, currently in France._/i

i_"It's just the same as before," Crowley sighed as he explained. "You'll still feel any and all pain, but you just can't die from any wound. If you got shot in the heart, you'll still feel it, but you'd heal instead of bleeding out. You will survive anything. Your healing will be slightly accelerated, but it's mostly just your normal healing."_

_"And if it's so painful that I would want to die?" Kaylee asked._

_Crowley grimaced. "You'd still be here."_

* * *

River screaming. That was the only thing that Kaylee could hold onto. Her vision was fading in and out. With blurry eyes, she could faintly see River on the pyre.

"No," she said faintly. She couldn't do it anymore. It was too much. Big, fat tears began to roll down her face. "Help..."

Everybody was pushing and shoving to get the best view of the "witch" burning. Simon was still trying his best to get to his sister, but it seemed that Kaylee's fight with the men of the town had caused others to hold onto Simon tighter in case he tried to help her. Kaylee couldn't move from the pain in her stomach. Tears ran down her face as she sobbed. She was a failure. All she had to do was keep River safe. That was her one mission. And now she had failed. She had failed Crowley and Castiel, but most of all, herself.

"Please, help," she managed to choke out.

"Enough," a voice rumbled. The voice wasn't raised. It wasn't even particularly loud, but everybody heard it.

She felt a hand on her back. She didn't have the energy to look up.

"Amy?" she heard the voice gently ask.

Kaylee's lips twitched in a smile as she recognized the voice. "Castiel."

His hands gently maneuvered her so that he could see the wound in her stomach. Everybody was silent as he placed a hand over her. There was a faint light, and the pain was no more. Her energy still wavering, Castiel helped her stand on shaky legs.

"Thank you," she managed.

"You're welcome," the angel answered.

"What are you?" the patron asked in horror.

Castiel leveled him with a glare. "I am an Angel."

Even though the night sky was clear, lighting flashed and the outline of giant wings could be seen on the building behind him. Everybody stood still, shocked. They parted as Castiel with Kaylee along side him moved towards the pyre. The men released Simon as they passed. Simon was utterly shocked. He didn't move when he was released. Kaylee snagged his arm and dragged him with them. He tripped over his feet at first, but caught himself.

"Go get your sister," Kaylee murmured to him.

He didn't need telling twice. He ran to River and untied her. Castiel turned to face the crowd.

"These people are under my protection," he announced. "Any who attempt to harm them would do well to remember that the might of Heaven is never far behind. This is your last warning."

There was another flash of lightning and the angel disappeared to the gasps of the people. They started to mutter and all gathered in a circle. Kaylee waited anxiously for their verdict. Simon came and stood with her with River leaning heavily on him and muttering under her breath.

"Was that real?" Simon asked in a shaky voice. Kaylee nodded numbly. "I'm dreaming. I have to be dreaming," he muttered.

"River, what do you see?" Kaylee asked quietly.

River smiled brilliantly, so out of place in the current situation. "Peace."

Kaylee sighed in relief. Simon looked between them confused but didn't have a chance to respond as the group broke up and stood in a line. Shakily, the nurse, Doralee, approached them before kneeling.

"I am sorry for my false allegations," she apologized, tears beginning to run down her face. "I surrender my life to you, but please, spare the rest of the village."

River walked slowly to the woman. Kaylee was afraid of what the girl might do, but she just knelt as well, tilting her head.

"You were scared," River stated. Not daring to look up, Doralee nodded.

"It's alright to be scared," River said, kindly. The woman looked up hopefully. River said nothing more, but stood up to walk back to Simon and Kaylee. Simon wrapped his arm around his sister for support, but River looked towards Kaylee instead. Kaylee shook her head numbly. It wasn't her place to comfort her, not anymore. Not after she had failed her in the girl's time of need. Simon is who River should look up to. She didn't deserve that level of adoration.

One of the woman from the gathering hesitantly stepped forward. "There is no forgiving what we almost had done. We are forever in your debt for you gracious mercy. I, personally, open my home if you ever wish for a place to stay."

"That is very kind of you," Simon said, taking the lead when it was clear that Kaylee wasn't going to respond. He looked at Kaylee to see what he should say, but she refused to meet his eyes. "Would it be too much to take you up on that offer now?"

"Certainly not," the woman said graciously. "Come. I will show you the way."

Simon took the lead, guiding River through the crowd. Kaylee followed behind more slowly. As they walked through the crowd, many backed away out of fear. The patron glared as they passed, but otherwise did nothing. The woman led them to a small store just off the main square. She opened the door with a key and showed them to a staircase in the back that led to the small apartment above the shop. As soon as they got upstairs, a small child ran and jumped into the woman's arms.

"Mommy!"

The woman laughed. "Nice to see yah, too, Giggles."

And the nickname fit, for the girl was indeed giggling. She squirmed to get down and the woman let her.

"This is Kiana," the woman introduced.

"How old is she. Ms.-" Simon paused as he realized that had never learned the kind woman's name.

"Ana, Ana Skye," the woman introduced. "And Kiana is four."

"She's adorable," Simon complimented as River knelt next to the girl. Kaylee scooted to the corner, uncomfortable with any interaction at the moment.

"Ain't she just?" Ana agreed. "I'm afraid that I don't recall your names either."

"I'm Simon and that's my sister, River," Simon said, pointing to the absent-minded girl playing with Kiana. He turned for Kaylee to introduce herself, but she remained silent.

"Are you alright, my dear?" Ana asked.

Kaylee shook herself out of her thoughts. "Sorry, I'm Kaylee."

"Nice to meet you," Ana smiled gently. "Welcome to my home."

"Do you run the shop downstairs?" Simon asked.

"I do," Ana nodded. "My late husband and I started it together when we were first married. He died of illness a year ago."

"I'm so sorry," Kaylee murmured. Simon looked startled to see her speak.

"Nothin' anyone can do," Ana grimaced.

"That's the truth," Kaylee snorted.

"You've lost a husband?" Ana asked.

"A finacé, a long time ago," Kaylee nodded.

"I'm sorry."

The two women looked at each other and burst out laughing. Simon looked startled.

"Sometimes life just hands you the sucky end," Kaylee smiled grimly.

"Glad someone understands," Ana smiled. She led them further into the apartment. Kiana ran after her mother and clung to her leg. River stood up gracefully and followed them. "I'm sorry, but I only have one room to spare. Will that be all right?"

"Of course," Simon nodded. "You're very kind to invite us into your home and trust us near your child."

"You were vouched for by an Angel. I'm not one to mistrust God," Ana explained.

"Yes. I'm not too sure on that part myself," Simon muttered.

Ana raised an eyebrow. "You did not know of your Guardian Angel?"

"I know!" River giggled. "I know!"

Simon turned, wide-eyed, to his sister. "River?"

"Simon, there is too much to explain tonight," Kaylee said quietly.

Simon spun on her. "You knew? You were shot and dying not an hour ago! And now, what, you're the expert on all things Supernatural?"

"I was assigned to protect you!" Kaylee shouted.

"Wonderful job you've done!" Simon sneered.

"Fine! I'll leave. I only took two bullets for you!" Kaylee shouted and stormed out. She paused at the door and looked at Ana who was watching them stoically, not wanting to get involved. "I'm sorry for leaving after everything you have done. Thank you for your hospitality."

She walked out and into the street. She ran, as fast as she possibly could back into the forest. She didn't care who saw her.

"Why!" Kaylee screamed into the skies. "Why would you do this to me?"

"You are the best for the job," a calm voice said behind her.

Kaylee spun to face Castiel. "I don't want this! I'm not doing it anymore!"

He tilted his head. "I don't understand."

"I quit. I refuse. I don't want this mission anymore!"

Castiel sighed. "I don't know if you have a choice."

"What do you mean 'I don't know'!" Kaylee shouted. "There's a choice. There is always a choice. That's what free will is!"

"You have about as much of a choice as the Winchesters did," Castiel informed her.

"Why me?!" Kaylee screamed. She collapsed on her knees, sobbing. She cried for River, for Simon. She cried for her late husband and poor son. But most of all, she cried for her life. For everything she had and all she didn't now. For her own death, even, which would never happen.

There was an uncomfortable clearing of the throat behind her from Castiel. "You are smart. You are strong. You are loyal. There is nobody else in the universe who could be everything that is needed. _Nobody_. It is more than just an honor to be chosen, you are protecting the entire human race."

"I owe no responsibility to them! River owes no responsibility to them. Why can't Heaven just leave me alone!"

"Because you are everything!" Castiel shouted, finally breaking his cool. "We in Heaven are privy to a small glimpse of the future. If you do not succeed, not only will River die, but the whole of the human race, everything they have stood for for the past few millennia, will disintegrate into ash. Everybody who you know at Crowley's base, all your friends aboard Serenity, would be gone. Could you live with that? Because you would still be here. You wouldn't have a choice. If you won't do it for them, do it for your own sanity!"

Kaylee was silent and Castiel sighed again. "Amy Pond, you can do this. If anybody can, it's you. We all believe in you, we all have faith."

"I don't have a choice," Kaylee murmured. "I have to keep on doing this."

"I'm sorry," Castiel said quietly.

"Not you fault," Kaylee said, wiping her eyes. "I'm sorry for blowing up on you."

"You needed somebody to yell at," Castiel smiled. "I'm happy to be here."

"Are we to stay here?" Kaylee asked.

The angel shrugged. "I wouldn't say that it was necessary, but you might find it safer than other places. It would be nice for River to find some stability as well."

"If we do stay here, I'm going to have to ward the entire area," Kaylee grimaced.

"And that includes against angels and demons, I suppose."

"You and Crowley wouldn't be able to get through, unless you know of some way to key you both in. If I'm going to do this, I'm going all the way. I can't take any chances of what could be after River. I have to protect against everything."

"Of course," Castiel nodded. "What about your food source?"

"I'll have to figure something out."

"The is a small city a bit over twenty miles from here," Castiel suggested. "I believe that they have a hospital for all of the villages within a thirty mile radius."

"Maybe I can get some sort of job as a specialist," Kaylee mused. "One trip every couple weeks should be enough to satisfy."

"Are you sure that you can do this?" Castiel asked.

Kaylee laughed bitterly. "Just a moment ago you were saying that I had no choice."

"And now I'm asking your mind, rather than your fate. Can you do this?"

Kaylee fixed him with a glare. "I can, and I will."

Castiel smiled. They both turned as they heard the sound of footsteps.

"I'm sorry," Simon apologized as he came upon a pair. "I didn't mean to interrupt."

"You're fine, Simon," Kaylee said. "You can join us."

"I'm so sorry!" he said immediately. "I didn't mean to say that you were nothing. What you said was true, you've taken at least two bullets for River and me. I'm sure that there are so many more sacrifices that I don't even know about. I can't thank you enough for everything you've done. If you want to leave, I won't stop you. Ana has offered us a permanent home with her and Kiana if we want it. I think that we will stay. You're welcome to stay as well. But if you do, I need some level of trust. The world is so much bigger than I realized and I need to know exactly how to protect my sister!"

Kaylee sighed and sat on a log. She patted the seat beside her and Simon sat.

"Simon, it's time you learned the truth about your sister. And about me."

**So how was it? Excited that Simon will soon be in the know?! Let me know what you think! I just wanted to remind you all that I still have the poll up for whether Simon and Kaylee should get together or not. This will be the last week that it's up because if I'm going to be putting romance in there, I need to start soon. Until next week!**

poll


	17. The Story

**Believe me, I have plenty of excuses. The main one being that I've probably just had the three most stressful weeks of my entire life. I won't go into every detail now (but if you PM me, I'll give you the whole rant:P), so I'll just say again that I'm really sorry for missing last week. I'd like to thank Jaded G and Dmitri Sylvanus for following and as ever, the biggest thank you in the world to my beta and best friend, KatsatheGraceling, who has helped me so much in dealing with the past few weeks. You are the absolute best.**

_Simon, it's time you learned the truth about your sister. And about me._

Simon looked at her, confused. "What do you mean?"

"I mean," Kaylee sighed, "that neither of us are what you would call 'normal'."

Simon frowned. "I know that River has her problems, but that doesn't mean she won't recover."

"No, Simon, things are so much more complicated than that. The world is a _much_ bigger place than you _ever_ could've imagined. You're not going to want to believe anything I say."

Simon was silent for a moment. "Is anything you're going to say a lie?"

Kaylee snorted. "While nearly everything I said in the past was a lie, I promise, everything I say here will be the truth."

"As will be everything I say," Castiel agreed.

"So you're an Angel?" Simon asked immediately, jumping on the fact that he could ask anything and get a true answer.

"Yes," Castiel answered simply.

"But that perhaps isn't the best place to start," Kaylee jumped in. Simon raised an eyebrow at her. She sighed. "This story is very complicated and there is so much to tell and I, for one, do not have all the details. Are you able to find an original copy of the Winchester Gospels, Castiel?"

The Angel nodded. Her eyes shifted to the side against her will and when they returned to their original spot, he was gone.

"Yeah, he does that," Kaylee chuckled at Simon's dumbfounded expression. "When he returns, he'll have a copy of the Winchester Gospels. The Gospels were written in the early 2000's by a prophet named Chuck Shurley and continued later by an anonymous source. An extremely censored version of them was included in the bible a bit more recently."

"Why do I need to know this?" Simon asked.

"Because what happens in those stories in how everything starts," Kaylee explained. "Those stories are where _I _start."

"What do you mean?" Simon asked, becoming even more confused.

Kaylee sighed. "My name is Amy Pond. I was born in 1981 to a single mother. And yes, that makes me over 500 years old. And well, the thing is, I'm not exactly human."

"Are you an Angel as well?" Simon asked.

Kaylee laughed. "No, nothing like that. To understand another aspect of this story, you have to understand that there is more out there than just what is in the bible. Vampires, werewolves, witches, everything that you've ever heard a scary story about, everything that goes bump in the night, they're all real."

Simon swallowed. "Everything?"

"Practically," Kaylee shrugged. She smirked, "Have I scared you yet?"

Simon shivered. "My sister was almost burned at the stake tonight and now I'm learning that nightmares are real. Everything feels like a dream right now."

"And yet it's still your life in the morning," she grimaced. "I've had those moments. You live this life long enough, you learn to accept that nothing is ever as it seems."

"I figured."

There was a fluttering noise next to her as Castiel appeared. "I have what you asked for."

The Angel held out a cardboard box and Kaylee had to hold back a laugh. She hadn't seen cardboard in decades. Simon eyed the box, but took it from Castiel and nearly dropped it thanks to the weight that clearly hadn't affected the Angel.

"Thanks," Simon grunted and set the box on the ground. He peeked inside and took a deep breath when he saw the dozens of short novels inside. "I'll get right on that."

"Those books are some of the most important pieces of literature from the time," Kaylee said seriously. "Every word in them is true. Although…" she smirked at Castiel. "Shurley's writing style leaves something to be desired."

"Not the most appropriate at times," Castiel agreed.

"Takes accurate a bit too far," Kaylee chuckled. "But are still important to read."

"What exactly are they about?" Simon asked. "My family was never very religious."

"These books detail the lives of the Winchester brothers, Dean and Sam," Castiel explained. "They were Hunters, humans who hunt and kill the creatures that most do not know of. However, their fate ended up being so much more than they could've ever dreamed."

"And these brothers did…?" Simon questioned.

Kaylee smiled. "That's what the books are for. As you can see, it would take quite a while to explain. I think that some things may be a bit clearer if you read those before explaining further."

"Are you both in these?"

"Castiel more so than me," Kaylee shrugged. She looked at the Angel. "You come in, when, the fourth part?"

"I believe so," he agreed. "I never understood why the books were split into smaller series of around twenty a piece."

"Reminds me of episodes of a tv show. Actually, that could be completely true. Remember that one story with the alternate universe..." Kaylee mused. "Anyway, Castiel is in most of the series from the fourth part on. I am only in one of the books in the eighth section. I guess that you should probably know that Kaylee isn't my real name. My name was Amy Pond. After the events that you'll read in the book, I changed my name to Amy Williams and after leaving Earth-That-Was, I changed it to Kaylee Fyre. I hope that doesn't confuse you too much."

Simon laughed a bitter laugh. "Confusing? What are you talking about?"

"Sorry," Kaylee said with a small chuckle.

"Anything else I should know?" Simon asked.

"The rest of my story and River's situation will be easier to explain once you've read those books. Oh yeah, and Crowley's in those books as well."

"Why does that not surprise me?" Simon sighed, shaking his head. "What is he, then?"

"He's a Demon. Although he was the King of Hell at one point," Kaylee said with a bright smile before bursting out laughing at the expression on Simon's face. "Don't worry, you'll learn exactly what happened to him in those books as well."

"And Mal's a vampire and Inara's a siren," Simon said sarcastically.

"Nope, everybody but me on _Serenity_ is human," Kaylee admitted.

"And what are you? You never said.

"My species is called Kitsune. Pretty boring on the scale of Supernatural creatures, but hey, I didn't chose."

"So what make you not human?"

"Mainly my diet." She laughed as Simon scooted away from her. "I'm not going to eat you. We thrive from the chemicals in the pituitary gland, but I've found that I can survive off of those from the deceased, rather than killing innocents."

"But you do eat human flesh," Simon shivered. "Yuck."

"Better than werewolves who eat out your heart," Kaylee grinned.

"Didn't need to know that. Didn't need to know that," Simon chanted under his breath. "So what is your anatomy like?"

Kaylee laughed. He couldn't quell the doctor in him, it seemed. "I don't actually know. I don't think anybody has ever really examined a dead Kitsune, especially since most of us die by the hands of Hunters who wouldn't care."

"But, you would need to have completely different…" he trailed off, lost in the world of science.

"Reckon if I showed him my claws he'd freak?" Kaylee stage whispered to Castiel. She laughed as Simon jumped.

"You… You have," he stuttered.

She held out her hand with a small smile and watched his eyes grow wide as her claws extended.

"I'm finished with tonight!" Simon declared, standing up and throwing his hands in the air. "I've seen enough!"

Kaylee laughed. "We should be getting back anyway. I like Ana, but I'm nervous to leave River alone."

"_Tzao Gao_!" Simon cursed and his eyes darted back towards the village before looking at the big box of books at his feet.

"Go check on your sister," Kaylee told him. "I've got the books."

"Thanks," Simon said gratefully and ran away.

"Thank you for tonight," Kaylee said to Castiel.

"Anytime, Amy," Castiel said with a nod.

"I don't mean just for healing me, but for… the talk, I guess," she shrugged.

"Are you going to be all right?" he asked.

"It will better with Simon knowing," Kaylee admitted. She sighed. "I'm going to miss my crew."

"It is only natural. They were your friends and secrets drove you apart."

"I wish that I had told somebody. That somebody would've made the Captain come back for us. But I drove Inara away and the rest of the crew was so suspicious. The Shepherd would've been the only one to stand up for me and the siblings, but he doesn't have much influence. I only would've needed to tell one more and that would've been enough."

"There is always hope that you'll see them again," Castiel encouraged.

Kaylee snorted. "Maybe that would've happened if we were on the same planet, but the 'verse is so much bigger than that. It would be one hell of a coincidence if we met up again. And what would I even say? Hi, thank you for abandoning me on that planet. But hey, you had good reason to because I'm keeping a hell of a lot of secrets that if I told you, you'd probably leave me again. Yep, that'd go over well."

Castiel chuckled. "I would love to be around for that conversation."

Kaylee snorted again. "I bet you would." She sighed. "I've got a bit of a project tomorrow, putting up wards and protections everywhere."

"You go back to where you're staying and sleep. I'll put up all the wards I know and in the morning, you can complete them with the Angel ones."

"That would be great," Kaylee sighed in relief. "I guess I have to apologize to Ana for storming out of her house after she graciously offered us a place to stay."

She began to walk back to the town with Castiel beside her.

"Neither I nor Crowley will see you until you move on. Are you sure you can handle this?"

"I have no choice."

**So yes, this is short, but any scene that I tried to write after this just seemed too fake after the heaviness here. Just tying up a few lose ends. The next few chapters, we'll get to explore their new life and see some development in Ana and Kiana (who I really hope you all like since I'm really excited about writing them!) If there is any scene in particular that you would like to see, something home-y or family-wise, just let me know! Next Sunday I will probably be in Massachusetts visiting family so I'll try to have the chapter put up before then. If I don't manage it until I get back, have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! You know what would be the best present? If you put something in that little box down there and hit submit:) In other words, please favorite/follow and I would love a review!**


	18. The Friend

**Hi guys. Sorry about the wait. I was at my aunt's in Boston over Christmas break. As always, thank you to my beta, KatsatheGraceling for everything. Now let's not keep you all waiting. Onto the story!**

Kaylee blew a lone piece of hair out of her face. She had been awake most of the night, staring at the ceiling. Ana had one spare bedroom with a bed only big enough for one person so both her and Simon had agreed silently to give the bed to River. Ana had apologized profusely as she used blankets to make makeshift beds. They had both thanked her and told her not to worry since she had already done so much. She hadn't questioned Kaylee's rampage nor the box of books Simon had returned with.

Kaylee turned on her side to look at Simon who was sleeping silently. She had heard him turning the pages of the Winchester Gospels until the early hours of the morning. He had fallen asleep with a book across his chest. She examined him in the the daylight sneaking in through the window. He looked like the young twenty year old he was suppose to be instead of the middle aged man that he had been acting like. She didn't blame him. She knew being a parental figure was exhausting, especially to one like River. She may have not have had an easy time lately, but she had to remember that he hadn't had a much better time.

She stood up quietly and exited the small room. She found Ana in the kitchen, cooking breakfast.

"Good morning," she greeted quietly.

"Good morning," Kaylee said back, just as quietly, hoping not to wake the rest of the house.

"Did you sleep well?" Ana asked.

"I did. Thank you again," Kaylee smiled.

Ana laughed quietly. "Y'all have _got_ to quit saying that. I'm happy to have more people in the house. I adore Kiana, but sometimes my little girl drives me crazy. Your girl, River, played with her all of last night. The first bit of peace I've had in _years_."

"Well I know what _that's_ like," Kaylee laughed. "I was a single mom with a little boy."

"What was his name?" Ana asked.

"Jacob," Kaylee said with a small smile.

"That's a lovely name."

"He's all I could've asked for. I just wish that his father had been around to meet him."

"Do you mind if I ask how?" Ana said hesitantly.

"It was a long time ago," Kaylee said with a small grimace. "He died in a vehicle accident only a few months before Jacob was born. And I'll just put it out there now that Jacob died from illness when he was young."

Ana just looked down sadly, knowing that there were no words for Kaylee's loss.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Kaylee asked after a couple minutes of silence.

"I've got it," Ana said with a smile. "Almost done."

Nevertheless, Kaylee quietly helped set the table and worked side by side with Ana to help prepare things. Theircompanionable silence was broken by the sound of little feet. The two women looked at each other and grinned.

"Mommy!" Kiana grinned.

"Mornin', sweetheart. Ready for breakfast?" Ana said, picking up her daughter.

"Yeah!" Kiana giggled.

"I'll go wake Simon and River," Kaylee said quietly. She walked quietly back to their small room. She opened the door quietly and peeked in. River was awake, watching the door.

"Good morning, sweetie. You sleep well?"

River nodded eagerly before hopping out of bed. "Where's Giggles?"

Kaylee laughed. "I think your new best friend is having breakfast."

River nodded again before hurrying out of the room. Kaylee let out a little chuckle again and knelt next to Simon. She shook his shoulder gently.

"No vampires!" Simon shouted frantically and scrambled away from Kaylee. She burst out laughing as Simon gradually became aware of his surroundings. He looked down, blushing. "Forget I said anything."

"Already forgotten," Kaylee promised, still chuckling. "How far did you get?"

"I'm done with the first part," Simon said before thinking for a second. "Maybe. Everything got a bit fuzzy towards the end."

"You weren't required to finish the whole thing in one night. But I am impressed on how much you've read already."

Simon blushed again. "I'm a quick reader. Not as quick as River by any means, but I'm still quick."

"I'd say," Kaylee said with a proud smile. "Now, are you going to spend the rest of the day in here or are you going to come have breakfast?"

Simon grumbled a bit but eventually left his warm blankets to join the rest of the group. He smiled at River and Kiana playing some sort of hand game while Ana dished out two more plates of eggs.

"I've gotta go to work downstairs soon," Ana explained. "Y'all are free to make yourselves at home. If you need anything, you know where to find me."

"Is there anything we can do around here to make things easier?" Simon asked. "I don't want us to be a burden nor have a free stay."

"Ain't no problem, sweetheart," Ana said with a charming smile. She nodded at River. "Your sister there is doing practically all I would want. It's nice not being the sole playmate."

"May I come and watch you work?" Kaylee asked. "I've done a lot of different jobs over the years, but I've never worked in a shop. I'm curious."

"Of course. You're free to come see. Not that there's much to it. It's a small town, after all."

"Are we going to hurt your standing in the town by being here?" Simon asked in concern. He blushed slightly at the odd looks that came his way. "I'm from upper class society. I'm used to having every single action bring consequences and difficulties with others."

"I suppose that the Patron is not thrilled, but nothin' he can do about it," Ana shrugged.

"Does your leader not have any power?" Kaylee asked, intrigued.

"Course he does. The power to get everybody riled up," Ana snickered. "Hun, he might have standing, but he's no patron, it's just the name given to the position of an elder who leads our church. I suppose the first really was a patron, but now it's just a job."

"So he leads the masses," Kaylee said, shaking her head in disgust. "I feel like I should talk with him."

"Normally you need an appointment, but I have a feelin' you can get away with anything in this town," Ana smirked.

"So everybody here believes what Castiel said?" Simon asked.

"It is real!" River pouted, looking up from her game with Kiana.

Kaylee knelt next to River. "But there are dangerous people out there. They might try to come after you."

"But the Pond will protect me," River said brightly.

"I'll try my best," Kaylee sighed. She stood up. "I should probably get back into some sort of fitness regimen. Did you _see_ how sloppy I was yesterday?"

"Those kicks looked pretty impressive to me," Simon snorted. "Why does she keep talking about a pond?"

"_The_ Pond," Kaylee corrected. "She's talking about me. I told you my name use to be Amy Pond. She's just picking up on that."

"She's a special girl," Ana complimented, not seeming to find anything unusual.

"You sure you're okay with our crazy lives?" Kaylee asked.

"For the last time, y'all are welcome here!" Ana laughed. "Now I've got to go to work."

"I'm coming!" Kaylee called and hurriedly put her shoes on before shuffling down the stairs after Ana.

"Welcome," Ana said, gesturing widely with her arms.

"Aww, this stuff is adorable!" Kaylee gushed, not having had the opportunity to look at anything the previous night. She picked up a wood carving and examined it.

"We have a pretty good system here. It works better if most small traders bring their stuff here and I sell it for them instead of trying to make a livable profit on their own," Ana explained.

"So it's truly a village shop," Kaylee said with a smile as she moved to the next item. "Do you ever bring this stuff into town?"

"Once a month, if something's not selling," Ana said with a smirk.

"Well that's a bite on the thumb," Kaylee chuckled. "Do they know that?"

"Nope!" Ana grinned. "Just think I'm a poor farmer whose husband likes to whittle and do other crafts during his downtime."

"Sneaky," Kaylee grinned.

"I have a feelin' we two are gonna get along just fine, even if you stay a year," Ana smiled.

Kaylee looked down. "I've got no clue where we're going after here."

"Well, not much happens here so you've got time to figure it out," Ana said.

"Speaking of…" Kaylee sighed. "I better go talk to that Patron guy. We're the biggest news of the decade, I bet. And I also bet that he's not too happy with us."

"Good luck," Ana wished. "Do you need to be shown the way?"

"From what I've seen, every major building in this place is right on this street. Shouldn't be too hard."

"See yah, then."

Kaylee walked out the door and down the street. The village really was quaint when your friend wasn't about to be burned at the stake. She passed a few people and greeted them, but all bowed their heads and walked faster. She shrugged. She wasn't bothered by complete strangers. She stopped in front of a church.

"Church of God. Land of Angels," the sign on the front of the door proclaimed. She snorted and walked in.

"Why do you disgrace our church?" a voice sneered.

Kaylee turned around to see the Patron glaring at her. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't realize coming into a _church_ was illegal."

He glared harder at her mocking. "Get out."

"Why?" Kaylee asked, shouldering him aside wandering around inside. "Am I not allowed to talk to God?"

"You're not faithful," the Patron spat.

"Because you believe that I'm friends with a witch? On the contrary, I've never believed in God more than when she's speaking."

Kaylee examined the inside of the church. It was clear that this was the nicest building in the whole village. She had no doubt that it was the Patron's work. If it looks like you have power and money, people will believe you have power and money. Manipulative jerk.

"Witches having nothing to do with the Holy One!" the Patron shouted.

"Of course not," Kaylee agreed, much to his surprise. "Witches are mortals who have sold their souls to demons to get their power, psychics are another story."

"Witchcraft," the Patron sneered.

"Wrong. Psychics have been around forever. Most would probably kill you for suggesting that they're witches."

"And even if that's true, what's the point of this?" the Patron asked. "You will never get my support, nor that of the town!"

"I don't care about your stupid support," Kaylee denied.

The Patron grinned, thinking he had just gained an opening. "Then you'll be out of town before the week's over."

"On the contrary," Kaylee continued as if she had never been interrupted. "I believe it might be you who is out of the job."

The Patron scowled. "You have no power here. You'll-"

"I'll what? Show people the truth?" Kaylee asked with a small smirk.

"What truth?" the Patron asked with no small amount of horror in his voice.

"Hmm, I don't know, perhaps the extra purse in your pocket, as opposed to the one you're wearing on your waist, or there are the love notes in your other pocket. Naughty priest."

"How do you know that?" the Patron demanded.

"Oh, a little Sherlock Holmes and who knows what you'll find," Kaylee smirked.

The Patron looked confused and she sighed. "Those were some of the best books ever! Did no old literature make it here? Whatever. There's a bulge in your pocket that appears rather heavy and jingles with every step. Then when I brushed past you earlier, I could feel the paper. Could be documents or other papers, but I doubt those are sprinkled with perfume. Honestly, I wasn't sure about either thing, but you just confirmed it for me."

"_H__wen dan_," the Patron snarled and grabbed for her arm. As soon as she felt contact, she grabbed his wrist and turned, stopping when he was bowed underneath her, gasping as his shoulder nearly popped out of its socket.

"Don't threaten me or my friends," Kaylee warned as the Patron grunted in pain. "Believe me, I've had more years of lying and manipulation than you could ever imagine. If I want to, I can have you out of this town by the end of the week on whatever charge I want. Don't try me."

She shoved the man away in disgust and walked out calmly.

"Wait!" he called out to her.

She spun on a dime, hissing as her eyes flashed yellow. Needless to say, the man backed down immediately with a very unmanly scream of fright. She smirked and walked right out. It was with a confident stroll that she walked back into Ana's store.

"The talk go well?" Ana asked, nonchalantly and handed Kaylee some sort of fruit drink.

Kaylee smiled up at her new friend. "Splendidly."

**Was it okay? Now my favorite, but I'm still working on developing my own characters and story lines. A bit of self-promotion here, but I'd like to say that i published and Arrow/Supernatural one-shot called possessed. As you can probably tell, I like writing stories that involve actors playing different characters, so when the lovely Katie Cassidy(the first Ruby in Supernatural) just so happened to show up in Arrow as Laurel Lance, I had to write about it! Okay, enough of that. This story has reached 50,000 words! Thank you to everybody who has read this! Please favorite/follow and leave a review!**


	19. The Family

**Surgery. Is. NOT. Fun. Do I need any more excuses? I'd like to thank FenrirWolfBlood for favoriting and MerelyMai for favoriting and following. As always, thank you to my wonderful beta, KatsatheGraceling. Now you all have been waiting long enough. Onto the story!**

There was no other way to say it, Kaylee was bored. She thought that having the peace and quiet of the small village would be relaxing. On the contrary, it made her even more paranoid. While on her trips with the _Serenity_ crew, she had been on constant look out for any Alliance police. She had always been on her guard. Now… this stupid place was _too_ friendly. She was suspicious of Every. Single. Person. in this place all the damn time!

Kiana squirmed in her arms and Kaylee softened her grip as she realized she had squeezed the four year old too tightly during her train of thought.

"Sorry, Giggles," she murmured quietly to the child in her arms.

"That's okay!" Kaina said brightly and giggled after for good measure. She went back to her coloring as Kaylee chuckled. If there was one thing she _wasn't_ suspicious of, it was that little girl. She had agreed to look after Kiana while her mother was working in the shop and Simon and River went for a walk in the woods. River was sad to be away from her new buddy, but Simon had wanted to talk to her away from the house. He had finished the whole gospel within a couple days. He had, of course, been astounded, of both her part in everything as well as his sister's. He was naturally a curious person, so he had wanted to know the full story. She had been reluctant, especially when it came to her own personal details, but in order for him to understand exactly what was going on and how much danger River was in, he had to know.

"Off, off!" Kiana demanded and wriggled until Kaylee let her off her lap. "Can we go outside?"

"Sure, sweetie," Kaylee indulged. The little girl clapped her hands and ran to put her shoes on. They walked downstairs and out the back door, Kaylee nodding to Ana as they passed. They stepped over a carpet concealing a demon's trap and out into the small plot behind the store that Ana used to grow vegetables. She sat down on the stairs as she watched Kiana chase a beetle around.

Her stomach was hurting. It had been over a week since she had had any of her needed food source. She wouldn't be able last much longer without getting some food. Human food could only sustain her for a while and take the edge off the hunger. She knew of Castiel's suggestion to go to that hospital and apply for a position, but that would mean records and interaction. Nearly all hospitals out here gained their supplies from the Alliance, however reluctant they were to provide it. She didn't want to involve herself in any of that, but it didn't look like she would have much of a choice.

* * *

"Well, we could certainly use someone like you on our team, Ms. Pond," the doctor said.

Kaylee grimaced at the name. Crowley had thought it would be a funny joke to have a fake ID with her real name on it. She had always kept it on her to remind her of who she was, but she had never intended to use it. But using an ID that said Kaylee Fyre would be worse. She almost gave a snort at how ironic it was that her fake name was more suspectible than her real name.

"I'm happy to know that," Kaylee smiled.

"Do you mind me asking why somebody with your qualifications is all the way out here?"

"I had a friend who shipped supplies to places out here. When I heard how bad the situation was, I couldn't _not_ help. If my expertise can save even one person's life, I will have counted my journey out here a success."

The doctor smiled condescendingly, the look of somebody who had seen people like her before. Those that had aspirations to help the 'verse, but in the end could accomplish nothing.

"Well, I think that we could use your help here," the doctor said, standing up.

"Thank you, Doctor Vasquez," Kaylee smiled, standing up and shaking his hand.

"I'll give you the tour of the place and you'll start tomorrow."

* * *

"_Wou Duh Tian Ah!_" Simon shouted as he came into the room. He quickly ran back out. "What the hell are you doing?!"

"Oh goodness! Sorry, sorry!" Kaylee exclaimed as she quickly covered up her plate. "I thought that you were in the garden with River and Kiana!"

"I was!" Simon called back from outside the room. "I came back to grab a bandage for Kiana. She scraped her knee. What I didn't expect was for you to be eating human brains!"

"Well I didn't expect you to be coming up so quickly!" Kaylee retorted. "I thought that I could eat in peace! The whole reason I got the stupid life-risking job was to eat. It may have only been my second day, but believe me, I'm taking advantage. Besides, how is it different from any human eating animal meat? It's not cannibalism if you're not eating your own species."

"Still not something I wanted to see," Simon said. "Is it covered up?"

"You're good," Kaylee said with a small chuckle.

Simon cautiously scooted around the corner and peered into the bedroom. He sighed in relief when he saw the plate covered up.

"Well if I didn't believe the Angels and the Bible and the Demons, that certainly confirmed things for me," Simon chuckled as he rummaged through his things.

"Yes, me eating pituitary glands certainly confirms the supernatural," Kaylee laughed as she sat on the bed, tucking her feet beneath her.

"Eh, what can I say. My sister's a prophet, I've met an Angel, and my best friend eats people." He pulled up short as he realized what said.

Kaylee froze as what he said registered. "Your… best friend?"

Simon didn't look at her. "Is… Is that alright?"

Kaylee didn't say anything. She hadn't even considered how close she had gotten to the siblings, or how close they had gotten to her. She had never really had friends. There were people that she was close to, granted, but she had always felt that a small measure of honesty was needed in friendship. In that regard, she could never be friends with anybody. The closest that she had come in centuries of friends was Book. He had known at least a part of her secret, which was more than what any human had known since the Winchester brothers themselves. Was Simon her best friend?

"You know, I could get use to that title," Kaylee smiled hesitantly.

"Oh God, thank goodness," Simon sighed in relief. "I wasn't sure if I was presuming too much there."

"Hey," Kaylee said, jumping down from the bed. "We're in this together, yeah?"

"Yeah," Simon agreed.

"Now I think that there's a hurt little girl outside who needs a bandage for her boo-boo," Kaylee said with a smirk, looking down at the forgotten bandage in his hands.

"Oh, right," Simon said, remembering the reason why he had come up stairs in the first place. "After I fix up our little Kiana, can I come back up here and talk over something with you? I could use your help figuring something out. Something that I think could help River."

"Sure thing. I'll just finish my meal up quick. I know that Ana knows something is really crazy about us, but I don't think she needs to find human organs in her fridge."

"You say that like it's so normal," Simon laughed as he went out of the room.

"You should've seen my fridge back on Earth-that-was!" Kaylee called after him.

"No, I really shouldn't!"

* * *

"So rumors got it that yah might be selected as our next patron."

Kaylee nearly choked on her drink and Simon patted her on the back to help. "What?!"

"Only what I've heard," Ana placated. "I know you don't want no fancy position. But you've got an Angel vying for you. It's kinda hard not to think of that as God's will to have placed you here to lead us."

Kaylee sat in silence and watched River and Kiana continue to play.

"But why me?" she asked quietly.

Ana smirked at her. "Hon, I don't think you realize what your presence has done her. We ain't used to receiving divine influence. In fact, we ain't use to much at all. Then y'all all came and shook everything up. Now God isn't just based on faith no more. He's real. And he's shown himself inside all of yah. But you, Kaylee, the rest of the townsfolk can tell you're the the leader here. So they figure, if God's hand picked you, you'd be the best leader for this town."

"Do I not get a choice?" Kaylee demanded.

Ana shrugged. "Just passing on the rumor. Might not turn out to be anything. Current patron is breaking down, they say. They're just looking for a suitable replacement. Whatever you did to him made him freak."

"I wasn't _that_ scary," Kaylee muttered. Simon snorted quietly and she smirked at him. When she had shown him his eyes and claws, he had given an almost girlish scream of fright.

The three sat in silence as Kiana and River continued to play, playing what seemed to be some form of tag. A bell rang from inside the shop.

"Well, that's work calling," Ana sighed and stood up, brushing the dirt off of her skirt. Kaylee and Simon said short goodbyes as their friend left.

"So what did you want to tell me?" Kaylee asked after a short minute of silence. We're practically alone now."

"Well, I've been talking to River a lot," Simon started. "And it occurred to me that while the whole prophetic thing is Supernatural, the Alliance would've dealt in _science_. With your fancy new job at the hospital, is there any way that we could get River in to examine her brain?"

* * *

She laughed as she twirled and spun. She hadn't had a place that she felt safe in years. But it wouldn't last forever, and she knew it. The voices that sang to her told her so. The same voices that told her everything. She glanced over to where her Pond and her Protector were sitting along with the mother of her Giggles and the voices grew louder for one second before quieting down again. She tilted her ear up to the Heavens and listened to what they had to say. She lost herself in their melody, although she was vaguely aware that she was still moving.

_"Soon,"_ they seemed to sing. "_Everything will come together soon_."

She smiled and continued her dance, not quite as oblivious as before. But that was okay. She had her own path to walk, just like her friends had theirs. They would know horror and suffering and pain, but for now, they could all enjoy one another. The way a normal family should.

**Short and sweet. Starting to move back into the original story line. I promise, the Serenity crew will be back in the next couple chapters! I wonder how that reunion will go... Anyways, thanks for putting up with my random posting schedule as of late. I'm really trying to get these chapters out every Sunday but life gets in the way:/ Oh well. I'll see you all next week for the next ****installment! Please drop a review! I'd love to hear you feedback:D**


	20. The Goodbye

**Yay! We've reached twenty chapters! And it's probably only halfway over... Right off, I wan't to say a HUGE thank you to Chinagirl18 for leaving me a wonderful and truly encouraging review! So I'm giving you a chapter _slightly_ longer than the ones I've been giving in hopes that I can get back up to my usual length. I'm not kidding guys, reviews make me want to write this story so much more:D I'd also like to give a shout out to Destialrox for favoriting and following. As always, thank you to my wonderful beta KatsatheGraceling who is one of the best ****friends I could've ever asked for. Now on to the story!**

"What?" Kaylee sputtered. "Are you crazy?!"

"Well… I thought it was a good idea," Simon muttered.

"Simon," Kaylee sighed, getting over her initial shock. "That requires documents and approvals and equipment that I don't know how to handle."

"But that's where I come in," Simon grinned. "I can work all that for you and nobody has to see River or her results."

"There is no way the hospital would let an outsider work their machines unless you can prove you have a medical degree. And then we're back to the whole documents and identification thing again."

"Sorry. I just thought we could get a better idea of what the Alliance did to my sister," Simon apologized, getting over his enthusiasm.

Kaylee sighed once again. "Maybe if we were still with the crew, you and Mal could've worked the operation well enough to get the information you need, but I just don't feel confident enough to be able to work something like that and still be able to keep my job."

_"Damn Simon and his good ideas,"_ Kaylee cursed as she walked down a hallway that she probably had no business being in. She nodded confidently at a nurse who barely spared her a glance. The hospital was small, and as such had only a few people who staffed it. Everybody was always busy getting on with their own business that nobody really paid much attention to one another. In fact, it was only during this time, her lunch break, that she had a spare moment to explore. She was one of _three_ doctors in the whole hospital and she was so busy, she didn't know how the hospital had survived without the helping hand she provided.

She looked around as she came to a door with the words _Diagnostic Ward_ written on a plaque. Seeing nobody observing her and no security cameras, she pushed the door open and looked inside. The room was dark and smelled so sterile that she knew barely anybody had ever been in here. Her eyesight was good enough that she didn't have to risk turning on the lights to see where she was going. She knew that the room was barely ever used because the hospital so rarely needed equipment of the caliber stored in it. Most of the people that came to the hospital were the wealthy merchants or business owners who owned many of the towns in the surrounding area or the villagers so desperate that they were willing to risk bankruptcy to help a family member. Carefully, she made her way over to a chair that she knew was connected to the piece of machinery she wanted: a 3-D neuroimager.

She sighed in relief. She had no clue if the hospital would actually have the equipment Simon would need to diagnose River. _Not _that she had decided to go along with his plan. She was just _considering_ it.

Now having a bit more of an idea of where things where, she walked back to the door and exited, turning to close it behind her.

"What are you doing?"

Kaylee nearly jumped out of her skin as she turned to face a security guard, trying not to let a guilty looked come over her face.

"I just wanted to know where some of the more advanced equipment is," she said and was thrilled when her voice didn't shake. She wasn't scared of what the guard could do to her, but if she lost her job, she'd be out of options for food.

"Why?" the guard sneered.

"Because if an emergency were to happen, I'd like to know where this stuff is," Kaylee sneered right back at him. She knew this particular guard had a reputation around the hospital for getting into other people's business, but she _really_ didn't want him prying into hers. "You see, that's what I do. I use medicine and technology to heal people because I'm a _doctor_."

The guard's face didn't change. "If an emergency were to occur, it would be the job of either Dr. Vasquez or Dr. Foltz, a _senior_ doctor, to take care of it."

Kaylee took a deep breath to calm herself. She was sure that this man was just trying to get a raise out of the new girl, but she had always hated people telling her that she wasn't good enough.

"Excuse me, but I don't think you were the one who hired me. I am more than qualified to deal with any medical emergency that should present itself. Now, I must be going. My lunch break is almost over and I have plenty of people who need my _help_."

She brushed past the nosy guard, taking note of his name on her way past. Tristan Fisher. She would be sure to make note of him in her head. She didn't want for him to report her to somebody. Technically, her excuse should hold well enough, but she didn't need a reason to be examined further.

"Fine!" Kaylee scowled as she threw blueprints of the hospital onto the bed where Simon was sitting. "Fine! We'll find some way to get you into the hospital so we can examine River."

Simon grinned up at her. "Yes! Thank you so much!"

"Don't thank me yet," Kaylee sighed, joining him on the bed. We still have to figure out how we're going to pull this off. And decide if we're planning on staying here or not afterwards. That could affect how much I'm involved in this whole deal."

Simon looked around the small bedroom and settled on the door where they both could hear River and Kiana giggling together. He sighed. "It's been really nice to not have to be worried about the Alliance finding us in some backwater village and to see River so happy, but we need to move on."

He grimaced as he picked up a section of the Winchester gospel he had been re-reading. "If there is one thing that these books have taught me, it's that prophets and the subjects of prophets have great things to do in the 'verse. I don't want our own fears to keep us from doing what's right. You and River need to find your purpose."

He looked towards the door again. "Maybe even bring down the Alliance while you're at it."

"Woah, getting a bit ahead of yourself there, don't you think?" Kaylee said with a nervous chuckle. She didn't want to think about how true his words about destiny rang in her head. She had never wanted to have some big purpose, never had. She had only ever wanted to live a normal life. Well, as normal as an immortal Kitsune could.

"But I'm not! Think about it. The Alliance clearly knows that there is something Supernatural about the world or they wouldn't have been so focused on River and keeping her from Angels and Demons alike. But how did they find out? And why would they be so interested in it all? Governments existed for millennia without either knowing or feeling the need to interfere with the Supernatural. What changed with this one? Why are they suddenly so interested? It almost makes you think that there is something working behind the scenes."

"And what? I'm just suppose to go and infiltrate the freaking government?! Do you even realize how insane that sounds? Simon, we have _no clue_ what's happening in the Alliance. Even if we could possibly figure out what's behind their sudden interest in the Supernatural, how are we suppose to stop it? The Alliance is _huge_. It would be impossible unless we could get every person in the 'verse to revolt!"

"It happened before," Simon said, refusing to give up on his idea.

"And look at how well that turned out! Mal and Zoe never talked about what happened to them! It was like Universe War I. If we're going to help people, throwing them into a war that they don't know the true cause of is not the answer!"

Simon was about to respond when there was a quiet knock on the door.

"What?!" they both turned and shouted. The door creaked open to reveal River holding Kiana. They both instantly deflated at the sight of Kiana's tear streaked face.

"You're scaring her," River said angrily.

Kaylee and Simon looked at each other, apologies clear in both of their eyes.

"We're sorry," Kaylee said, reaching out to wipe a tear off of Kiana's face.

Simon cleared his throat. "No, I'm sorry, Kaylee. I shouldn't have pushed you towards something you don't feel comfortable about. We don't need to think about that yet. Right now, let's just focus on the next couple of weeks and what we're going to do."

"We're leaving," River stated solemnly.

"We don't know that for sure," Kaylee said with a small smile towards Kiana who had just clung to River's dress tighter.

"We are," River said and tilted her head.

Simon forced a chuckle. "Well who can argue with God?"

"And what is your excuse this time, Ms. Pond?" Tristan Fisher sneered at her.

"I was trying a shortcut," Kaylee scowled at the security guard who caught her close to the records room.

He laughed, a harsh, cruel sound. "Your excuses are getting weaker."

"There is a hallway right over there that is less crowded and wider to get gurneys through," Kaylee said, pointing. She had started coming up with valid excuses before she went exploring each time now in case she got caught once again. "It is an easier route to transfer patients by."

Some of Fisher's confidence seemed to waver as she continued.

"Besides, why must you always think I'm up to something? We never met before so it's not a past grudge and I've done nothing but work here for the past few weeks. Don't even have one blemish on my record so far. You're paranoid."

Fisher smirked at her. "Last job I wasn't paranoid at landed me here. It pays to be persistent."

Kaylee's eyebrows pulled together. Something was off about that last statement. She ran it through her head a few times. _"It __**pays**__ to be persistent,"_

"What did you do before this?" Kaylee asked innocently.

He instantly became guarded once more. "Let's just say, a person ended up getting kicked into an engine and leave it at that."

Kaylee's blood ran cold as that triggered some half-forgotten memory, but she couldn't remember where from.

"That's an unpleasant ending," Kaylee acknowledged. "Now are you going to keep bothering me or can I get back to work?"

He stood to the side to let her pass. She did so without glancing back.

"I'm watching you, Ms. Pond!" he called after her.

"It has to be a Sunday morning. It's the only time that I work, it's not too busy, and a _really_ nosy security guard is, thankfully, off," Kaylee explained as she and Simon leaned over a table with a bunch of notes all over.

"And you planted the records of a past visit when she was younger in the file room?" Simon checked.

"Done," Kaylee assured him. "We're lucky that nearly all of the staff, including the other doctors, came within the past fifteen years or this would never work. I think most would remember a young girl needing this kind of equipment."

"Yeah, most doctors would try to get out of a hospital out here as soon as possible. It worked out for us," Simon muttered. "So do you think we're good for in two days?"

Everything in Kaylee wanted to say no, but she knew that if they didn't do it soon, she would never think they were ready. She had already arranged for a small transporter to get them to and from the hospital. From there, they would race away to another village similar to the one they were currently staying in that Ana had told them about and sent word ahead about them to. They would hide out there for a couple days before chancing moving to a larger hub where they could perhaps get a ship off world and get back to Persephone. Everything was planned and mistakes accounted for.

"We're good."

"Thank you, Ana, for how much you have helped us," Kaylee said, smiling at the friend she was going to leave behind.

"Thank you for opening my eyes," Ana smiled. "I don't know the full story, but I'd like to think that y'all all fight for the best of the people in the 'verse. I am and will always be happy to help God's cause. And the rest of the village would be happy to welcome y'all back at any time. Now instead of making Kaylee patron, they want to make all of you saints and erect statues."

"What?" Simon choked.

"Yeah, my reaction, too," Ana laughed. "I told them y'all were just people, but they're insisting."

"People will be people," Kaylee sighed and swung her bag around her shoulder. "I guess it's time to be going if we want to get there in time."

"May good luck and fortune follow you always," Ana said and pulled a small bag out of her pocket. "A token of good luck from Kiana, I, and the village."

Simon took the bag and pulled out three small crosses, no bigger than the palm of his hand. One was carved out of a light wood and a beautiful swirling pattern. The second was stained black and was simple, but strong. Nothing adorned it, but it was clear from the way Simon was looking at it, it was perfect for him. The third was also more simple, but it was the one that caught Kaylee's eye. There was a slight design at the ends in an almost flower like design, but the arms were were simple with little stones adorning them until the center was reached. Resting there was a pale blue, transparent jem, resting in the wood. Kaylee silently took that cross from Simon and looked at it closer. There, if she looked through the jem, she could see a heart carved into the wood.

"Thank you," Kaylee said softly and closed her hand around her cross.

"These are beautiful," Simon said as he examined the intricate designs that River's cross contained.

"We wanted to give you something to remember this small village by," Ana shrugged. "I'm glad you like them."

Kaylee's eyes filled with tears as she hugged Ana one last time. Simon soon followed.

"River!" he called to his sister.

River slowly walked over, holding a tearful Kiana's hand. Simon and Kaylee both took their turns hugging Kiana and giving her a kiss on the forehead. The three of them got into a small vehicle that Kaylee had managed to snag for them.

"It's time," River said quietly and a single tear ran down her face.

They all waved goodbye as the trio sped away into the sunrise.

**Well, we're getting back on track now aren't we? Tell me your thoughts on what's going to happen because I promise you, this time in the hospital will be NOTHING like in the show. There will be a _little _twist at the end. Oh, who am I kidding, it's going to be a pretty major twist, but it's going to bring us back to the Firefly crew:D I'm not promising that they'll be in the next chapter, but soon! As always, reviews are much appreciated and please favorite/follow. I'll see you all next week!**


	21. The Hospital

**Hello and welcome to the next part of the story where we are FINALLY getting some plot back! Yay! Before we get on to the story, I'd like to say thank you to my reviewer, SeanHicks4. You had PM turned off, so I just wanted to say, again, thank you for reviewing, and it's okay if some of it was a bit out there for you. I don't mind you saying that. Just thank you for taking the time to say something! Moving on, as always, thank you to my reviewer, KatsatheGraceling for her invaluable help. Onto the story!**

Kaylee sighed as she plopped down at her desk. She had come in twenty minutes before Simon and River would enter the hospital and was already tired. She pulled her cross out of her pocket and started to play with it. She had been doing it quite a bit since they had left Ana's.

_"Dr. Pond? You're needed for a Ms. Reiger," _the tablet informed her.

This was it. She stood from her desk and went down to the lobby. She passed very few people on the way down. She did nod to Dr. Vasquez as she passed and he gave a small wave back from where he was talking with two men she didn't recognize.

"It's just a basic psychiatric exam followed by a brain examination, routine for this patient," a nurse explained, shoving a data tablet in front of her face. "Normally one of the other doctors would handle a case like this, but the patient's records indicate that she prefers females."

"Thank you," Kaylee said amiably, taking the tablet. She scrolled through the pages, pretending to read the false information. "The poor child. It seems as if she's been suffering from these maladies for quite a while."

"Since birth, from what I can tell," the nurse agreed. "Must be hard on her family, having to pay for these sorts of appointments every few years."

"They must be managing somehow or she wouldn't be back here again," Kaylee said. She walked over to the bed where River was sitting in a hospital gown with a jumpy Simon standing next to her. His eyes wouldn't quit flashing between the other doctors and patients.

"Mr. Reiger, it is good to meet you," Kaylee said, shaking his hand. She leaned in a bit closer. "You know, you could try to look a _little_ bit less guilty."

She leaned back again. "I'm Dr. Pond. I assume this is Ms. Reiger?"

She grinned down at River who barely acknowledged her, preferring to play with her hospital gown.

"Everything seems in order," Kaylee said, looking down at her tablet while Simon nodded, understanding her double meaning. "It should just be a basic exam and we'll get you out of here within the hour."

"Sounds good," Simon agreed, calming down know that Kaylee was near.

Gently, Kaylee helped River into a waiting wheelchair and rolled her out of the room. Once they were in an empty hallway, Kaylee began to speak.

"Any problems with admitting her?"

"No," Simon grinned. "They barely even glanced at the ID card once I told them she had been here before. God bless Ana for getting us those unused ones."

Kaylee smiled at the last miracle Ana had pulled off for them. She and Simon had been debating the best way to get River in when Ana had come up to them, offering an Alliance registration card for a village girl who had died a couple of years past. She had explained that while it was required for all births to be registered, they rarely, if ever, reported deaths. So, according to the card, this girl was still living and breathing. It just so happened that this girl also had a male cousin close in age who had been killed in a hunting accident. Ana had humbly asked the family for their ID cards. Between knowing that they were for Kaylee and her friends and their lack of need for them, the family had given them up, not even needing a promise for them to be returned.

"Here we are," Kaylee said, opening the door to the Diagnostic Ward with the specialized equipment and turning on the lights.

Simon wandered over to one of the machines and ran his hand down it, sighing. "It's been ages since I've seen tech like this."

"We don't have time for you to get freaky with med equipment, Simon," Kaylee called and he blushed fiercely. "Let's get this over with."

While Kaylee helped a quiet River into the reclined chair, Simon turned on the machine. As soon as River heard the humming sound, she immediately started squirming.

"No! No more needles," River moaned.

"No needles," Kaylee promised. She gave Simon a look. She didn't care if there actually _were_ needles involved, but he better deny it now for River's sake.

"No needles," Simon promised. "Lie back."

River, calmed down, did as he asked. Kaylee watched in fascination as a holograph of River's internal systems appeared before them. Simon used his hands to manipulate the image until only River's brain remained, close up, so Simon could examine it easier.

"You're going to have to explain what's going on here. I may be a trained Doctor, but the last time I went to med school was fifty years ago. This is a bit out of my field," Kaylee grimaced.

"Fifty years? And they still hired you?" Simon asked, examining his sister's brain.

"Crowley likes to keep all of my fake ID's updated. They think I graduated a few years ago and partnered with an experienced doctor on Persephone before coming out here," Kaylee shrugged. "Now can you please explain?  
"Do you see here?" Simon asked, zooming in on one section that was slightly discolored. "They… They opened her skull and cut into her brain."

"Why would they do that?" Kaylee asked. "She would've been healthy at the time. There is no tumor, no need to biopsy anything."

"But look," Simon said, twisting the image, showing another discolored part of River's scan before turning it again and showing a third area. "There are multiple areas of scar tissue. This wasn't just one time, this was over and over."

"My God," Kaylee gasped. "You don't think they were trying to… Dissect her or something while she was alive, do you?"

"If they knew she was a prophet, it's definitely possible they wished to figure out how she received her visions," Simon said grimly, turning the image again before pausing. He zoomed in to another part of River's brain. Kaylee could see what caught his attention. The image was so discolored it didn't look like anything was wrong since the whole area was the same. "Oh my God…"

"What's the matter?" Kaylee asked, scooting closer. "Why is that area so much worse?"

"Her amygdala is stripped."

Kaylee's mind reeled. The amygdala. The area that allows you to affect emotion and it's connection to memory. "But… Why? I mean, what could they gain by her not being able to suppress emotions? Or perhaps affecting her memories that go with the emotion? It still doesn't make sense!"

"I don't know," Simon frowned. He started muttering to himself as he began to transfer the information onto a data pad. "We've spent enough time here. It shouldn't take this long to do a basic mental scan."

"I'll lead you guys to the entrance," Kaylee confirmed, helping River off of the chair.

Simon finished up downloading the scans and they made their way quickly out of the room. The whole way back, Kaylee babbled on about random medical conditions whenever they passed somebody. She helped them out to their getaway vehicle and gave Simon the keys.

"Go on, I'll catch up. Let me erase any signs of you guys being here. It's better not to leave a trail."

Simon nodded and Kaylee didn't stay to watch as they went off. If she had, she might've heard River start to tremble and moan, clutching her head.

"What's the matter, _mei-mei_?" Simon asked over the roaring wind.

"Two by two, hands of blue! Two by two!" River cried.

* * *

"Ms. Pond! A moment of your time," Dr. Vasquez called.

Kaylee didn't let her frustration show as she turned with a smile on her face. "What can I do for you, doctor?"

"There are a couple of people who want to ask you some questions. If you would follow me to my office."

"What's this about?" Kaylee asked as she fell into place beside the other doctor.

"Frankly, I ain't got a clue," he shrugged. "They came asking if we'd had some young girl who apparently had some big condition and I said that you had a girl fitting their description earlier. From the way they were speaking, it sounds like this girl could be dangerous."

Kaylee felt her blood run cold at his words. "And… who are these people with?"

"The Alliance," Dr. Vasquez said. He chuckled, mistaking her look of panic for one of surprise. "Yeah, I know, I can't believe they're all the way out here either."

Kaylee forced herself to chuckle along as they made their way to his office. As they entered, two men stood, both clasping their hands behind their backs.

"Hi, I'm Dr. Amy Pond," she said brightly, feigning innocence. She held out her hand, but neither one shook it. She let it drop.

Dr. Vasquez cleared his throat and led her to a seat.

"Amy Pond," one of the men mused. "How… biblical."

"How so?" Kaylee asked with a tight smile as she took a seat. The others followed suit.

"Oh, don't mind our musings," the other man said casually. "Now, we have a couple of questions to ask you."

"Ask away," Kaylee said through another forced smile.

One of the men took out a picture and put it on the desk. Kaylee's brow furrowed as she noticed the blue latex gloves he wore. "Have you seen this girl?"

Kaylee examined the photo. The photo had obviously been taken while River was still at the Academy. Her hair was stringy and her eyes held a haunted look. Her skin was deathly pale.

"She looks familiar…" Kaylee hesitated. She had a feeling these men would know if she was lying, but she couldn't give River away.

"Perhaps you've seen her before?" the first man asked. "Such as your patient earlier?"

Kaylee put on a confused look. "That girl was way healthier than this one. Her hair was full and she wasn't as skinny. And that look in this girl's eyes, I don't think I'd forget it."

"This girl is a fugitive from the Alliance, Ms. Pond," the second man said darkly. "If you have seen her, we must know."

"Even if the girl I tended to earlier was this one, she's already left, back to Bancha I believe," Kaylee said, saying the name of a town the opposite way River and Simon were heading.

Both men stood abruptly. Kaylee and Dr. Vasquez stood with them.

"Is that all, gentlemen?" Dr. Vasquez asked.

"It is," the second man nodded. "We will leave you with this. Call it a thank you gift."

Kaylee collapsed to the ground as her mind exploded in pain. She screamed and clutched her hands over her ears, trying to block the terrible sound tearing through her brain. After what seemed like hours of agonizing torture, she quit moving, too exhausted to continue. The sound finally stopped.

"She held out a while," one voice sneered.

"She was the one traveling with the siblings, no doubt," the other voice said. "We're definitely in the right place."

"Let's go. We can't let the stupid prophet get away. Our protections may cover the planet, but if she and her brother can get off world, they'll be under angel protection once again."

There was a bit of commotion as the two left the room. Kaylee let herself moan and roll over. Without the agonizing sound, her body was quickly repairing itself. On shaky legs, she stood and looked with bleary eyes around the room. She rubbed her eyes and was astounded when she felt something wet. She pulled her hands away and inhaled sharply at the sight of blood. There was blood coming out from under her nails and… Her tongue flicked out briefly. Yep, her nose was bleeding.

She looked for Dr. Vasquez and saw a leg poking out from behind the desk. She stumbled over and gasped. What _was_ that thing those men had used? She could see blood on the doctor in all of the places she did. The only differences was that she was still alive, and it was obvious that he no longer was. She stumbled into the doctor's private bathroom. She couldn't help her small gasp as she glanced in the mirror. Quickly, she began to scrub the blood off of the face and hands. Once she was sure she was presentable, she left the office. She needed to leave as soon as possible, before Alliance police were called in and, even more importantly, before those two men found River and Simon.

At a quick pace, but one that wouldn't attract attention, she made her way to the back door, intending to exit and run, at Kitsune speed, to where River and Simon were waiting for her. She was just about to leave when she suddenly realized something. Damn it! Of all of the stupid pieces of shit to leave behind, she had left her cross in her office! Giving an annoyed huff as she turned on her heel, she walked back quickly. Her office was just as she had left it. With a sigh of relief, she grabbed her cross and tucked it into a pocket of the nice pants she was wearing, ones she hated but had to wear for work.

"Ah, Ms. Pond, I've been looking for you," a voice said from the doorway.

She spun. Leaning against the doorframe was Tristan Fisher.

"What are you doing here?" Kaylee asked, her frustration at another holdup evident in her voice.

"I told you, Ms. Pond, looking for you. Or, should I say, Ms. Fyre."

Kaylee froze. "What… What did you call me?"

"Kaylee Fyre," Fisher said casually, pushing off from the doorway and entering the room. "Previous mechanic to the ship _Serenity_, under the command of Captain Malcolm Reynolds."

He sat down on the top of her desk and pulled out a concealed gun. "Now, let me tell you how this is going to work. You are going to follow me to my ship where we already have your associates quietly and without a fight, or I will make this _very_ painful for you. And, if that's not enough motivation, for every minute over five from now until we get to the ship will be another minute I get to torture one of your friends in front of you."

He leered at her. "So, what will it be?"

"You have Simon and River?" Kaylee asked fearfully.

Fisher smirked. "Did you not hear a word I just said? The clock is ticking!"

Kaylee took a shaky breath and left the room. _4:30, 4:29, 4:28_ the clock went in her head. She walked as quickly as she could to the back exit where Fisher directed her to a ship. She was shoved inside and the bay door closed behind her. She saw River and Simon strung up by their wrists to the ceiling, both appearing to be unconscious. There were several guards milling around the room, all heavily armed. Kaylee tuned to Fisher.

"Where are your bosses?" Kaylee demanded. "I want to speak to those murdering freaks."

For the first time, Fisher gave her a genuine emotion: confusion. "What are you talkin' about? We're on the way to meet the boss."

"Wait, you mean those two guys from the hospital earlier aren't with you?"

"What two guys?" Fisher asked.

"Who's your boss?" Kaylee demanded, wondering who else but the Alliance was after them.

Fisher's smirk was back. "Does the name Adelei Niska mean anything to yah?"

**Uh oh... Well, I guess you guys can figure out how these guys and the Firefly crew are going to meet again. Along with the surprise visit from the "Hands of Blue", I'm pretty happy with how much of the plot was able to get introduced/reintroduced. There are some big reveals on the way! In the meantime, please favorite/follow and leave me a review saying anything, your thought, your guesses, ect. I'd love to hear what you guys think! Until next week!**


	22. The Reunion

**I'm sorry sorry for not posting last week, but I was sick over the weekend and then SUPER busy during the week. But to make up for it, I have a double length chapter for you all! I'd like to thank Rhi17 and Mehan-Smith for following as well as my awesome beta, KatsatheGraceling:) But you guys have been waiting long enough, so that's plenty of that and here's the chapter!**

"What do you want with us?" Kaylee yelled as a blindfold was tied around her eyes. "If it's about that stupid train job, I would've thought it's obvious we're not with the rest of the crew anymore!"

"Don't ask us," Fisher's voice sounded in her ear, making her flinch away. "We're just gettin' the job done, ain't we boys?"

There was a loud chorus of agreements as Kaylee was shoved roughly to the ground. She could feel a couple more trembles through the metal floor and heard a yelp from Simon and a small scream from River as they were thrown to the ground beside her. Kaylee struggled to sit up with her bound hands and glared behind the blindfold in what she hoped was the general direction of Fisher. She could hear River whimper beside her and tried to scoot in her general direction.

"Don't move!" an unknown voice called. "We weren't told what condition you had to be brought back, only alive!"

"Can't you see she's scared?" Kaylee said angrily. "I don't know if you all realized, but this isn't exactly the best situation for a teenaged girl! And unless you want to be listening to ear piercing screams the whole ride, I suggest you let me comfort her!"

There was no response so she took it as a concession and continued scooting towards River.

"_Mei-mei_?" she asked quietly. "Are you doing all right?"

"Cold," River said quietly.

"It's a bit cooler than Jiangyin, isn't it?" Kaylee agreed.

"No. Their hearts are cold," River said, a bit more firmly. "Space is cold. The blackness has no heart."

"Isn't that the truth," Simon sighed.

Kaylee grimaced. "I won't let them hurt you. Either of you."

"You don't have a say in what we do, girlie," a voice came from right beside her and she felt the cool metal of a blade pressing against her throat. "I think that's enough chattin'. We'll be there soon."

They had no choice but to sit there in silence, listening to the sound of the ship's engines as it took them to their destination. It was probably hours, but it could've been days with nothing to do but to sit.

_"Their __UIC cable is faulty,"_ Kaylee thought as the engine stalled briefly. She entertained herself for the next few minutes categorizing every sound the engine made and what it meant. All too soon, she had finished with her little game and was stuck with nothing again. She flexed her cramped shoulders slightly, but the rope binding her hands dug deeper into her wrists.

Without warning, the ship began to shake slightly and she could feel the speed drop.

"We're coming in!" one of the voices said gleefully.

_In to where?_ Kaylee couldn't even imagine what sort of horrors would await them in the hands of the master torturer. Oh, God, where was Castiel? Why couldn't he tell what was happening? They were outside of the wards she had set up, so why hadn't he sensed them? Crowley, she knew, wouldn't come unless she summoned him, for which she had none of the materials, so she couldn't blame him for his ignorance of their situation.

"The Angel won't come," River said quietly.

"What do you mean?" Simon asked.

"Quiet!" one of the men shouted.

"The Angel won't come!" River's voice began to rise. "He's trapped. He won't come!"

"I said, quiet!" the voice came along with an audible smack of skin on skin. There was a small yelp of fright and pain before a thud on the floor that Kaylee could only assume was from River falling over.

"What the hell?!" Kaylee screamed as Simon began to cuss the mercenaries out in Chinese. "River? River!"

The was a loud gunshot and they all quieted.

"That was a blank," said a voice that Kaylee recognized as Tristan Fisher's. "The next will be a bullet in your kneecap."

"Are we landing soon?" Kaylee dared to ask.

She could almost hear the smirk in his voice as he responded. "I wouldn't be so anxious if I were you."

"Lock in five!" another man shouted.

"Alert the boss of our _special_ guests!" Fisher replied. "He'll be wanting to see to them personally, I assure you."

There were laughs from the men around the ship at those words.

"Come on, you three," Fisher demanded, his voice a lot closer than before. His hand was suddenly on her arm, dragging her up. There was shuffling behind her and she knew that Simon and River were being treated the same.

She was pushed forward and nearly tripped over her own feet as the ground sloped down. She expected her feet to hit dirt and to feel the wind, but it never came. The metal just continued. When the ground leveled out, she realized why the man earlier had called for the men to get ready for _lock_. They weren't on a planet, they were on a space station.

It was completely disorienting walking through the place blindfolded, but Kaylee tried her best to memorize the route. They walked through what she would guess was a maze of hallways and doors. Eventually they stopped, and her hands were unbound only to be chained to a metal rack behind her. She could hear the same be done to her companions. Her blindfold was finally taken off, but the light was so dim that it didn't disorient her much. Her eyes focused on Fisher right in front of her who looked a bit disappointed that she didn't seem more scared. She raised an eyebrow at him.

"Well? Is that it? Do we not even get to meet the man himself?"

His brow furrowed. "You'd think you_ wanted_ to get tortured, cause I guarantee that's what's coming for you as soon as the boss gets here."

Kaylee smirked. "I'm not scared."

"Kaylee, you are free to shut up," Simon said with a shaky voice.

Fisher laughed. "Ah, so it seems we _do_ have a smart one here."

"You leave them alone!" Kaylee demanded. "Torture me all you want, but leave them out of this!"

"Not my call to make," Fisher said, clucking his tongue. The door opened but she couldn't see who it was from where she was standing. "But here is the man who decides."

"Ms. Fyre," a heavily accented voice greeted her. She twisted her head to catch a glimpse of Niska. Her eyes met the man's and he smiled cruelly at her. "I have been wanting to meet you for some time."

"Why go through all of this trouble?" Kaylee demanded. "If it's from that stupid train job, Mal returned the money and I think it would've been obvious by how long you've had your men on me that I'm not a part of the crew anymore!"

"Perhaps not," Niska acknowledged. "But do not assume it's about the money. You can be of further use to me yet."

He turned to look at the men still in the room. "Leave us."

All but one left the room. The last one positioned himself by the wall, watching her carefully. Niska walked out of her line of vision to her left where River was tied up.

"You see," Niska began. "This started as a basic revenge mission: you failed me, I get you. But then I discovered there was someone very special that the good Captain had taken on his ship."

"Don't touch her!" Simon shouted, shaking the rack with his struggles.

"And her good brother, of course!" Niska exclaimed. "I wouldn't bring one without the other."

"Leave both of them alone!" Kaylee shouted angrily.

"You do not tell _me_ what I do and not do," Niska said with a glare, coming back to face her. "You have nothing to offer me. These two offer much more in way of rewards."

"On the contrary," Kaylee said, an idea beginning to form in her head. "I can give you much, _much_ more."

Niska examined her. "Are you offering me a trade?"

"Yes, but I want your promise that neither you nor your men will harm the siblings if you find my deal worthy."

"This information must be worth a lot," Niska observed.

"It is. I promise," Kaylee assured him.

"I will be the judge of that. What is it?"

"Can I ask for a small favor first?" Kaylee asked, hoping against hope that her acting skills developed over her many years could win her this. "My morals mean a lot to me, and part of that is that if you shake a persons hand, they will not break their promise. Humor me please."

Niska watched her carefully and she could see him weighing the potential for important information with her small demand. He must have decided that she could not cause any harm and so nodded to his man to unchain one hand.

"Kaylee, what are you doing?" Simon whispered so quietly that only she with her good hearing could make out. She didn't want to respond at a level that the others could hear so she remained quiet.

Niska body guard came over and unlocked the chain holding her right hand in place. Quick as lightning, she let her claws extend. One quick flick of her finger and she had made a small cut on her own palm. She reached out and cut Niska hand as well before grabbing his hand in an iron grip and not letting go at his cry as she chanted.

_Miscere sanguine,_

_et locutus est ad custodiendam,_

_verbum tuum,_

_diabolos mos ploro!_

A bright white light encased their hands and Niska cried out as he was thrown backwards. Kaylee, too, could feel the force of the spell pushing on her, but the rack she was chained to did not give.

"What have you done?!" Niska cried from the floor.

"Ensured your cooperation," Kaylee smirked. "As soon as I tell you my information, neither you nor your men will be able to harm River nor Simon."

"You lie. It's just a fancy trick," Niska denied, picking himself up. "I do not know what you did, but I can do what I want to whomever I want."

"That spell was not a fancy trick," Kaylee explained. "That just so happened to be a fairly powerful blood spell taught to me by one who knows well. Tell me, Niska, are you a superstitious man?"

"Magic does not exist."

Kaylee laughed. "Oh, you better believe it. Your life is tied to it now. As soon as I uphold my side of the bargain, the blood pact is complete."

"Yet, you have not given this information that you deem so worthy yet," Niska sneered.

"It's simple, I can offer you the best entertainment and torture you could ever imagine," Kaylee started.

"My God, Kaylee! Don't!" Simon shouted, becoming aware of what her plan was. "We can take whatever he gives us. Don't sacrifice yourself like this!"

Kaylee ignored him and continued. "You see, I cannot die. It is impossible for me to. I'm offering you the possibility to try out any form of torture that you want. Even if you skin me alive, I will not die. Any limb cut off can be easily reattached, even after a month. I will not deny that it will be extremely painful for me, but I will gladly take three people's worth of torture onto myself if it means that the siblings are safe!"

"Damn it, Kaylee!" Simon yelled, struggling against the rack. "You're insane!"

"This is impossible," Niska breathed out quietly.

"Test me," Kaylee dared him.

"But if you were not telling the truth, I would kill you," Niska observed, impressing Kaylee with his forethought.

"Fine," Kaylee shrugged. She took a deep breath and with her still unchained hand scratched herself deeply across the neck. Niska watched in fascination as the wound slowly stopped bleeding and closed within the space of a minute.

"How can this be?" he questioned.

"Uh uh, not part of the deal," Kaylee said, shaking her head. "I'm not required to tell you anything except for my immortality."

Niska smiled cruelly at her. "Well, Ms. Fyre. I do believe we have reached an understanding.

* * *

Kaylee breathed heavily, gritting her teeth together before the next bout of electricity ran through her. She had been through all manners of torture, but this seemed to be Niska's favorite. He enjoyed watching her squirm and scream (she had given up trying not to so long ago) and had even forced Simon to watch a few times. Due to the blood pact, he could not harm the siblings and thus was forced to acknowledge that they did not have much use to him. Kaylee neglected to tell him that the promise only worked with his personal perception of harm, so he did not even try to do anything other than shove them both in a small room a few doors down from the one she was still chained in after the one and only time he had tried to pull a knife on Simon and had immediately felt a burning in his heart. He did not wish to repeat the experience.

She screamed again as electricity that would kill any human coursed through her again.

"Up it again," Niska told his man gleefully.

After a certain point, all the pain had blended together so she could no longer tell when the voltage was higher.

"That would be enough to power this whole station for a day," Niska said in awe. "Unfortunately, we cannot use reserves that much, so let us go back to the old fashioned way."

Kaylee sighed as he took out a knife. _Here we go again._

* * *

It had been a month since they had been taken by Niska. Kaylee had been forced to reveal more of herself than she had wished when it became clear to Niska that human food was not doing anything for her and he questioned her about it. She had reluctantly told him of her special need for pituitary glands. He had stared at her briefly before laughing. However, out of curiosity to see if her claim was indeed reality as many of her others had been, he had provided what she asked. To his horror and fascination, she had been so hungry that she tore through the decapitated head he brought her as a joke to reach what her body desired. Afterwards, he no longer questioned anything she said.

Everyday was another day full of torture. She had long given up any hope for escaping, safe in the knowledge that Simon and River were at least semi-safe and cared for as Niska's prisoners. She had only spoken to Simon a couple times when Niska wished for him to watch the Torture Kaylee Show, but only enough for him to say that they were both okay. She had never seen River.

This had become her life, until, all of a sudden, she wasn't the only one on the rack anymore.

* * *

Mal tried to feel around the best he could. But with his hands bound tightly behind his back, he couldn't get that good of a feeling. He rolled his eyes under the blindfold as Wash prattled on. It had annoyed the hell out of him that the stupid pilot had forced his right hand man... woman not to come. Although, he was forced to admit, having Zoe there would not have prevented this outcome.

"If you think you know what's happening, then you tell me. You wouldn't spare Zoe if she were in this situation with you, would you? You would be planning, and plotting and... possibly scheming. So whatever Zoe would do in this instance is what I wanna do. Do you know why? No matter how ugly it gets, you two always come back with the stories. So... I'm Zoe. Now, what do I do?" Wash prattled.

"You can start by not talkin' so much," Mal snapped. He shook his head in frustration. Tempers had been high on the ship the past few months. Ever since he had made the decision not to go back for Kaylee and the siblings, if he truly thought about it. Most had been pissed at him. Book sure as hell was and Inara as well once she had gotten over whatever argument she and Kaylee had had that afternoon. Wash had been particularly vocal while Zoe had quietly followed his lead, but he could tell that she didn't necessarily approve either. Jayne hadn't seemed to care much, but Mal had caught him playing with Kaylee's parasol in his room once. All in all, it hadn't made for a great environment. It had briefly helped that their last few jobs had been largely successful, but he knew that their newfound riches would not keep the tempers at bay for long.

He continued to feel his way around the room until he hit a big metal piece in the center. He turned so that his hands could feel what it was. He traveled around the contraption until his hands hit something that clearly wasn't metal.

"I think there might be a person here," Mal called, interrupting whatever Wash had been saying. "I can't tell if they're dead or alive."

"Oh, that's great. Just _perfect_," Wash stressed. "We're stuck in this place, who knows where, with no way of getting out and a corpse."

Mal turned in the general direction of the door as he heard it open again. There were footsteps and suddenly the blindfold was yanked off.

"_Tah mah duh huun dan_," he muttered, staring into the grinning face of Adelei Niska.

"What? What is it?" Wash asked and Mal looked over at his still blindfolded friend.

"Nothing good," Mal muttered.

"Captain Reynolds, it has been a while," Niska said, smiling cruelly as one of his men led Mal over to what he could now see as a sort of rack. He could definitely see a body chained up to it. The person looked like they could be dead from the amount of blood and the lack of movement. He couldn't even tell if it was a male or female with the head drooping and dirty blond-brown hair covering their face, although the clothes did look vaguely feminine.

"What happened to them?" Mal demanded.

"Oh, she had her throat torn out. She will be fine soon once she has recovered enough to breathe again," Niska said, waving off his concerns.

Mal eyed him. How could some poor girl be okay again if she had her throat torn out? He wasn't able to continue asking questions as he was chained up next to the girl and Wash was as well on his other side and had the blindfold taken off.

"We're in trouble."

Mal rolled his eyes at Wash's statement before turning his attention back to Niska. "If this is about the train job, we returned the money."

"Why must you all assume it is about the money?" Niska asked with a sigh.

"So it's not?" Wash asked hopefully.

"Of course not!" Niska exclaimed as he turned and accepted a knife from one of his men. "This is revenge. I told you, we would not be so solid."

Mal thought that he was going to get stabbed in the chest, but Niska just used it to tear open the front of his shirt. "Hey!"

Niska ignored him and did the same for Wash before a couple of his men began fastening little suction cup looking things connected to wires to their bare chests.

"So who's the girl?" Mal asked, trying to distract himself from what he suspected was coming.

"Ah, I thought you would like to see a familiar face!" Niska exclaimed.

Mal twisted in place to try to see the girl once again. He couldn't see much of her except her hair. He could tell that she was fairly short. He wasn't sure if her slenderness was natural or due to being with Niska and no doubt starved.

"_Go shi_," he heard Wash mutter. "Oh my God, Mal, it's _Kaylee_."

He twisted harder to get a glimpse. His mind ran through a million possibilities, but he could only find blame in himself. She had, no doubt, suffered through a lot and it was probably his fault for screwing with the stupid job.

"Is she still alive?" he demanded. He was surprised when Niska laughed.

"Impossible to kill that one. I assume she never told you."

"Told us what?" Mal asked, not bothering to hide his curiosity. Perhaps they could finally start to get a bit of background on their mysterious ex-mechanic.

However, at that moment, Kaylee groaned.

"You're getting less creative in your torture, Niska," she said in a raspy voice, spitting blood on the ground.

"Ah, but Ms. Fyre, I have brought guests," Niska said, walking around the torture rack so that Mal couldn't see him.

"What are you talking about?" Kaylee demanded.

"Fancy meeting you here," Wash called.

There was silence for a moment and Mal could almost see the gears turning in her mechanic brain as she worked out who it was.

"Oh no," Kaylee muttered. "Wash?"

"He's not the only one," Mal grimaced.

"Mal?" she asked. "Oh God. He got you both?"

"Well we certainly didn't come here by choice," Mal replied sarcastically.

"Is everybody else okay? Inara, Zoe, Jayne...?"

"All fine," Wash reassured her.

"Well this has been touching," Niska said. He moved back around towards Mal so he could look him in the eye. "But unless Ms. Fyre has some other magical bit of information that she can use to trick me out of torturing you, I'm afraid you're out of luck."

Niska turned to glance at Kaylee with what Mal would almost describe as a hopeful look in his eye, almost as if he _did_ wish that Kaylee could give him something that would stop him. Mal closed his eyes. No, that couldn't be it. Niska wouldn't give up on torturing anybody. Nothing Kaylee could say would stop that.

"I have a great deal more info," Kaylee spat. "But I'm afraid little, if any, is relevant in the current situation, even if it is fascinating to hear. I only made the deal so that River and Simon would be safe. I have nothing more to sacrifice that would directly benefit you."

"Ah well," Niska said, torn between disappointment and glee. "It was worth a try."

With that, he moved over to a little podium and pulled a lever. Mal gritted his teeth together as electricity coursed through him.

* * *

Kaylee could hear the sounds of Mal and Wash groaning from the torture but couldn't bring herself to care much other than being grateful that it wasn't her. The latest time where Niska had torn out her throat with a clawed metal glove had been particularly hard. She had been aware of the pain, of course, but then she also couldn't breathe. That part had been particularly bad as it had caused her brain to ache and her legs to fail. She floated in and out of consciousness as her body healed. When her throat had finally recovered, it was only to find that her lungs were not working any longer so she had to wait for those to recover as well. The first breath of fresh air that she had been able to take was both a godsend and hell. Still floating in the blackness, she was surprised when voices other than Niska's woke her.

Her initial reaction had been pure horror. Part of the reason why she hadn't tried very hard to find and contact _Serenity_ after they had been left was to_ protect_ the crew. And now she could do no such thing. True, she could always make another deal with Niska, but while she still had plenty of information, she didn't think it was a good idea to tell him of angels and demons since, she was sure, he could find some way to exploit that knowledge. There was little he could do with her since there was no medical reason why she was immortal and thus he could use the info for nothing more than torturing her however the hell he liked.

It took her mind a while to realize that the room had become quiet except for Mal and Wash's heavy breathing. Niska must have finished with them for the time and had left them to recover.

"_Gohn Shi_. You made it through day one," she said in a dead voice.

"How long have _you_ been here?" Mal demanded.

"About a month."

Clearly that wasn't an answer he had been expecting. "A _month_? How has he not killed you yet?"

Kaylee laughed harshly. "Let's just call it a curse that I'm still alive."

"Is he this bad every day?" Wash groaned.

"_Bad?_ You haven't experienced bad yet. Let me tell you, electricity is bad and leaves you feeling just wrong and out of control, but wait until he starts with the blades. Those are a _little_ bit more permanent."

"Yet you're still here," Mal muttered. "Niska said earlier that he tore your throat out, but he must've been exaggerating since your still alive."

Kaylee froze and was infinitely glad that neither Mal nor Wash could see her panicked expression. What exactly had Niska told her old crew? She decided to play it safe just in case she could control any of the damage.

"Must've been," she agreed, making sure her voice stayed casual. "I got some pretty deep cuts, but obviously I'm still breathing."

"So how did you end up here?" Wash asked trying to avoid the awkward silence.

"Well, you know, after we were _abandoned_, I had to support Simon, River and myself somehow," Kaylee said in an accusing voice. She would not let them forget what they had done to her and especially to the defenseless siblings. If they had been left on their own without her, she dreaded to think what might have happened. "I must've shown up on Niska's radar somehow when I started working at the hospital because it turns out that one of the security guards that started working there soon after I did was one of his men. A random day, I happened to take River to the hospital to get her checked out and as soon as we leave, we're all captured, blindfolded, and ended up here."

"Where are River and Simon?" Wash asked.

Kaylee grimaced to herself and thought about the wording of her answer carefully. "I'm sure you heard earlier that I made a deal with Niska to keep River and Simon safe. Niska keeps them as prisoners here, but cannot do anything to them. They are surprisingly well taken care of and it seems like the only thing they're lacking is things to do. Although it sounds like they play a lot of logic games between themselves."

"Why would Niska keep them if they're no use?" Mal grunted.

_Because for such a cruel man, Niska has a very broad definition of harm that includes leaving a teenager and her slightly older brother on a planet with no help, _Kaylee thought. But she couldn't tell them that.

"I imagine he knows about how much the Alliance wants for them and is looking for the best price," she replied neutrally.

When there was no immediate denial, she wanted to sigh in relief. She wasn't sure if that lie would cut it. The room was silent for a minute before Wash broke it again.

"Mal might get mad at me for saying, but things haven't been the same without on board."

Kaylee was stunned. She thought that it had been a unanimous (or mostly unanimous. She couldn't see Book being so cruel) decision to leave her, River, and Simon behind. Was it possible that there might have been others that supported her? Or was it just guilt that led Wash to admit that? Mal remained silent, but that was no indication to her of what he felt. He could've either still been mad at her and thought he made the right choice, or he could be too proud to admit he made the wrong one. Without seeing his face, she could only guess.

"Thanks, I guess," she said quietly, trying to pour as many apologies into her voice as she could. She knew that Mal and the rest of the crew weren't the only ones at fault in the whole fiasco. She had, and was still, keeping secrets from them. Secrets that had only caused tensions to rise and tempers to flare. In addition, she had begun taking over many aspects of the crew. She became a leader, like Mal; a fighter, like Zoe and Jayne; and even Simon's sort of job as a doctor. It hadn't been her place, and she knew that it was quite possible that some resentment had led to her being left behind. "I'm sorry... for everything I guess. I didn't exactly make things easy for the rest of you."

"That shouldn't have mattered!" Wash argued. "Everybody has a right to their own lives. And it's only natural that after spending every minute of our lives with each other that we get into arguments and want things to be our way. Hell, that's why I'm in this situation to begin with!"

"And why's that?" Kaylee asked. She was fairly sure that Wash's argument was an oversimplification of her problems with the crew, but she was still curious about how things had been.

"Zoe didn't like an idea of mine and I didn't like how much time she was spending with our dear captain so I kind of forced myself into a run to trade some goods. In the process, we end up getting ambushed and captured," Wash admitted. "But I'd gladly do it again if it meant that she would never be on this piece of _fey wu_."

Kaylee smiled slightly at Wash's devotion to his wife. "Do you think they know what happened to you guys?"

"If they haven't figured it out by now, I'd be surprised," Mal said, speaking for the first time in a while. "There aren't many who can do this sort of thing or have the inclination to get _us_."

"God, I hope they don't try to barter for your lives. Niska always has a way of double crossing you," Kaylee grimaced.

"Doesn't seem like he's done it to you yet," Mal observed.

"Not from the lack of trying," Kaylee assured him. "Believe me, he's tried multiple times to get around his portion of our deal, but there was always something stopping him."

"But you can't buy your own freedom?"

Kaylee shook her head, but then realized that neither man could see her. "No, part of the deal requires me staying here and being his play thing."

"And I don't suppose you'll ever tell us what exactly this deal entailed?" Mal said with an accusing tone.

"It is none of your business," Kaylee sneered, her voice hard. "The information I had to share was highly sensitive and the only reason why I did it was to save River and Simon's lives."

"Okay, let's not argue. We can't even run to opposite ends of the ship here," Wash pleaded. "Kaylee, is there any way you can think of to get us out of here?"

"Don't you think I would've if I could? I have been suffering at the hands of a madman for over a month now."

"Mal?" Wash prodded.

"Even if we could get out of this room and past every person in the base, we don't know where we're going or even have a ship to go to. There ain't nothin' we can do."

"Fine," Wash sighed. "I guess we're stuck here."

_At least they'll be able to escape into the blackness of death after a while, _Kaylee thought to herself. It may have seemed harsh, but she knew enough about Niska's tortures to be able to claim that death would be better. For now, Mal and Wash were still strong and full of will and energy. Soon, they would be broken and, eventually, dead.

Kaylee twisted as she heard the door open again, but couldn't see who it was from her position.

"Well here are your men, Milady," Niska's mocking voice came.

"I'd like to buy their freedom," Zoe's strong voice answered.

"No, Zoe! Get out of here!" Wash moaned. "He won't let us go!"

"On the contrary, I do believe she has brought enough for one release," Niska said. "However, the other two will have to stay."

"The other two?" Zoe questioned. She walked around the rack and saw Kaylee. "_Wou Duh Tian Ah_."

"Makes your decision harder, yes?" Niska said with a smirk. "The man you love, the woman you abandoned, or-"

"Him," Zoe said immediately, pointing to Wash. She gave Niska a glare. "What were you saying?"

Kaylee knew that there was little chance of her being chosen, but she couldn't help that little bit of optimism that still rested in her heart. Zoe looked at Kaylee once more and she could see all of the guilt and regret resting there.

"It's okay," Kaylee said quietly. "You don't owe me anything."

If she didn't know better, she would've said that there was a tear in Zoe's eye, but she must've been imagining things. She had never seen the Second cry. Zoe walked to the side where Wash was being released.

"A moment!" Niska called as they were leaving. "Perhaps you should have a memento to what you have given up."

Kaylee sighed. She knew what was coming for Mal. She had heard enough stories from Niska's own mouth to know that this is where he tweaked the deal in his favor, or at least against his opponent. So she was surprised when he came and stood in front of her.

"Oh come on!" she groaned. "Why me? Obviously I don't mean much to the rest of the crew."

"Come now, Ms. Fyre," Niska grinned at her and leaned down, speaking in her ear so that the others couldn't hear. "Would you prefer it to be somebody who didn't have your miraculous healing?"

"Damn you," Kaylee growled.

Niska laughed. "That's the spirit."

He grabbed one of her chained up hands and with a flick of his knife, cut off her pinky. She screamed at the pain and the rack shook from her violent twist.

"My dear," Niska said to Zoe and offered her Kaylee's finger wrapped in a bit of cloth. Zoe juggled between supporting Wash and taking the bundle. Zoe didn't say anything as she exited the room with her husband.

Kaylee looked down at the blood that had pooled on the floor under her hand. The bleeding had already stopped and the pain had begun to lessen. To reattach it, she would just need to reopen the wound and mix it with the blood of her finger and it would heal back together. She and Crowley had figured this out after she had accidentally gotten her hand caught in an engine and three of her fingers had been pulled off.

"Well that was interesting," Niska said. "But now we can get back to the _really_ fun part."

**Yay! People are coming back together! I hope I was able to catch Niska's sadistic evilness well enough and made the reintroduction of Mal and Wash the one you guys were looking forward to:D I hope you all enjoyed this 6,000 word chapter (!) and I'll see you next week! Please favorite/follow and drop a review:)**


	23. The Escape

**Hello everybody! You know, it's not _quite_ midnight where I live yet so I'm going to count this as being on time:D Well we're finishing up the episode from last week and I'd like to thank the AMAZING Katsathegraceling for betaing this even in her crazy schedule! I love you Moe! Well that's enough of that, onto the story!**

Kaylee breathed deeply, trying not to let Mal's screams and groans affect her too deeply. She had been absolutely horrified when she had seen the device Niska had taken out to use on Mal. _Of course_ she knew what it was. It had been developed using _her_. She could remember the first time she had felt the metal "arms" crawl beneath her skin and tear her chest apart. No human could survive it. She wasn't even sure that as a regular Kitsune she would have with how close the metal arms got to her heart. A metal blade to the her heart had been the way that killed her originally and she had flashbacks to when Dean Winchester shoved the knife into her, further torturing her.

"I believe Ms. Fyre recognizes this device," Niska had said, showing it to Mal. "Do not worry, it is not absolutely positive that it will kill you now."

Kaylee hadn't even been slightly relieved at hearing that. Mal would want to die once he knew the pain that device caused and his screams at the moment seemed to confirm that point.

_"Just give up,"_ she thought wearily. _"It's no use. You have the escape I want. Just give up."_

But he wouldn't let go of the will to live. Until, all of a sudden, his screams died into a couple grunts and silence.

"Get him down," Niska said in disgust. "I had believed that we had perfected this machine with you, Ms. Fyre, but I suppose we miscalculated your tolerance with that not of a freak."

"Good," Kaylee groaned. "He deserves some peace."

Niska spun and had his knife in his hand in an instant. With a couple quick slashes, he had carved several new lines into her face. She could barely muster the energy to do more than groan. "The same cannot be said of you. However, I'm afraid we were prepared."

He motioned to his man and Mal was quickly taken off of the rack and laid on the table. A defibrillator was taken out and applied to Mal's chest. In less than a second after the shock was applied, Mal was gasping on the table, wide awake.

"You died, Mr. Reynolds," Niska told him gleefully.

"Seemed like the thing to do," Mal groaned.

"When you die, I can't hurt you anymore and I want two days, at least. Ms. Fyre here has survived a month with me, including many times with that glorious device. Can the same not be said for you?"

Kaylee grimaced as she realized what Niska was doing. Mal didn't know that she couldn't die. All he would hear would be that the girl who had betrayed his trust had survived more than he could. It would give him the fighting will that Niska wanted him to have.

"Screw you," Mal whispered as alarms started to go off, startling Kaylee who hadn't heard them before during her time there. Niska and his man looked at each other, surprise, confusion, and a slight hint of worry in their faces.

"Are your crew idiots?" Kaylee asked nobody in particular.

"Listen... if you got guests, I can come back later," Mal told Niska.

"Do not worry of their ship," Niska said into some communication device on the wall. "Keep them from getting too close. And keep them from accessing this room or 3B18."

He turned off the communicator and turned back to Mal. "Call this my little bit of mercy. Your crew will not access the rest of the base, but they will not reach you either. However, if they choose to return peacefully to their ship, they will be free to leave."

Mal glared at him.

"Why bother?" Kaylee asked and Mal's glare turned to her.

"I don't believe you understand your importance," Niska said, coming over and caressing her cut face where her wounds had already closed. She hoped that the blood would cover them enough so that Mal didn't realize her ability. "You have given me something that I could have never _dreamed_ of finding. I do not care what the small crew of some overconfident smuggling ship does, but I will not lose this precious _gift_."

Kaylee spat in his face, but it didn't faze him. He calmly wiped it from his face and cleaned his glasses. He walked back over to the communicator on the wall and pressed a button.

"Viktor, what is this? Viktor!" he asked when static only came through. He had his back turned so he couldn't see, but Kaylee clearly could as Mal quietly sat up and took the previous torture device off of a table and walked up behind Niska's bodyguard. The man seized as the device was turned on and fell to the ground. Mal stepped over the body and punched Niska in the face. The grand torturer went down and the captain began to beat him as hard as he could.

"Mal, behind you!" Kaylee called and Mal turned around just in time to avoid being bulled over by Niska's man.

"Niska's knife!" Kaylee yelled. Both men looked down and saw the blade sticking out of one of the unconscious Niska's pockets. Both dived for it and grappled. Apparently Mal won the struggle because the second man's motion ceased. He got up and ran to Kaylee. He paused before her.

"Can I trust you?" he asked.

"No," Kaylee answered simply. "But you can believe that I sure as hell will help you get out of this freaking place. So long as you help me, Simon, and River out of this place on your ship."

He considered that for a moment before shrugging and beginning to undo her chains. As soon as her hands were free, she held out her hand for the knife that he still held.

"Come on. I can actually fight with a knife. We'll find you a gun or something."

He shook his head. "I'd prefer to hold on to a weapon that could stab me in the back."

"On your own head then. I can fight just as well with my bare hands," Kaylee said. She looked over at Niska and pursed her lips. Deliberately, she walked over and snapped his neck.

"What the ruttin'... Kaylee!" Mal yelled.

She turned her gaze to him and look him straight in the eyes. "Believe me, it is best that nobody knows the information that I was forced to tell him. Besides, the world will be better without somebody like him around. He'll be in hell on _their_ racks for many decades, I believe."

With that, she turned and walked to the door. Finding it unlocked, she walked out only to come upon several men guarding it. Quick as a shadow, she jabbed her elbow into the neck of one and sweeped the feet out from under another. The others, just noticing the commotion, turned to her, but it was too late. A scratch with her claws here, an overpowered punch to the chest that broke a few ribs there. As every man was coldly and calculatedly taken down, Kaylee could feel her old self returning, one who did not give in to the torture and hell that she had been put through the past month. When every guard was unconscious or dead, she turned back to look at Mal who was looking at her with undisguised amazement with a bit of horror mixed in.

"Well?" she asked, picking up a gun from one of the men and throwing it to Mal who caught it, fumbling slightly in his surprise. "Come on. We have to find Simon and River. I'm not leaving here without them. And we have to stop your crew from doing something idiotic in their attempt to rescue you."

She took off down the hallway, surprised that her legs still worked well enough after their limited use the past month. However much she hated it, she kept her pace to something the severely weakened Mal could keep up with, although he did have adrenaline pumping through him at the moment. She was sure he'd collapse back on the ship.

"Niska said 3B18, right?" she called back to the panting captain. "That has to be where River and Simon are. He wouldn't have told his men to guard that room specifically unless he thought that there would be something of interest to us there."

"Kaylee, wait!" Mal panted. She stopped and turned on a dime, raising an eyebrow.

He stopped beside her and held out the knife. Her eyes widened in surprise as she took the weapon. "Please tell me I won't regret this."

"I'll get you out of here," Kaylee promised. "Anything that happens afterwards depends on you and how willing you are to use your mind instead of your pride and ego."

With that, she turned a corner and came across two guards. She twisted the arm of one surprised man behind him and held her knife to his neck while Mal knocked the other man unconscious.

"If you don't want to end up dead, I suggest that you tell me where room 3B18 is," Kaylee said darkly in the man's ear.

"I won't!" the man struggled. Kaylee sighed and flicked the knife down so that she cut across his stomach. The man screamed. "Okay. I'll tell! This hallway, take the third left. You'll probably see a good twenty men outside!"

"Thank you," Kaylee smiled tightly. She stepped back and the man breathed a sigh of relief. Quick as lightning, she hit him in the head and the man collapsed to the floor. She didn't even bother to look at Mal who no doubt had some new expression of surprise on his face.

_"Third left. Third left." _she repeated in her head. She stopped right before the turn with the sign 3B above it.

"How many shots does your gun have?" she asked Mal quietly.

"Ten in this one and another six in the small gun I picked up," he replied, patting a small gun that he had strapped onto his waist.

"Okay, every shot has to count then if that guy was telling the truth," she muttered. "I know that you're a good shot, but give me one of the guns."

Mal looked between the two guns before sighing and handing her the one with ten shots. She smiled slightly at his admittance that she could probably fight better than him. She cocked the gun and grinned at him. Without warning, she spun out into the open and quickly counted how many people were there. She got off three quick shots before running to the other side of the hallway, opposite from the stunned Mal.

"Not quite twenty," she said, rolling her eyes at Mal. "There's only thirteen if my count is right. Ten, now, if all of my shots made, which I think they did if the noise is anything to go by."

Indeed, there was quite a bit of yelling going on. She switched her gun to her left hand so that most of her body would be covered when she stuck her head around the corner and fired off another two shots before having to take cover from return fire. In her brief glance, she was pleased to see three bodies lying on the ground behind the men now taking cover and trying to move forward at the same time. Mal, taking the cue from her, also peeked around the corner on his side and fired off a couple of shots. They continued like so before both ran out. Kaylee chanced a look and to her disappointment still saw four men alive. And they were twenty feet away still as well. _Damn_. There was not going to be an easy way to do this.

"Mal, promise me something," Kaylee said. At his slight nod after a moment's hesitation, she continued, "Don't watch this."

She took off around the corner, not stopping to see if Mal had obeyed her. As soon as bullets began to fire, she could feel several pierce her skin, but that didn't stop her. She tore one man from his hiding spot with all of her strength and her flew across the aisle into another. She ran to the next and with her claws, pierced his neck. She turned to look at the last man who quickly dropped his gun at the sight of her yellow eyes and claws. She knocked him over the head and he fell to the ground.

"Kaylee?!" Mal yelled. She looked down the hallway, but saw to her relief that he hadn't looked.

"I'm all right. Give me a minute!"

Quickly, she bent down and took the jacket off of one of the men and put it over her ruined shirt, hiding the three bullet wounds in her couldn't do much about the one to her arm or the graze on her leg, but she hoped that she had enough blood on her, both hers and others, that he wouldn't be able to tell anything seriously wrong.

"You can come out now!"

Mal slowly walked around the corner and his eyes widened once again.

"What's with the coat?" he asked suspiciously.

"My shirt was torn pretty badly," Kaylee answered, hoping he'd leave it at that. "This is the room we want."

She spotted keys on one of the dead men's belts and took them. Taking a second to try and find the correct one, she grinned as she felt the key turn and the door open.

"Kaylee!" Simon exclaimed from his bed, standing up quickly.

"My God, you guys lived in luxury," Kaylee exclaimed as she looked at the small room. There were two small beds along with a toilet and a small sink. River smiled up at her from the other bed.

Simon just shook his head. "What the hell happened? We heard alarms, but nobody would tell us what was happening! And then there was gunfire in the halls and…"

He trailed off as Mal walked around the corner. He looked between Kaylee and the captain, trying to figure out what he missed. Kaylee sighed.

"There isn't enough time for the whole story. _Serenity_ is here and the crew was trying to save Mal which gave us an opportunity to escape. But we've got to get going before more people come or before the crew gets seriously hurt."

Simon nodded and River walked up quietly behind him, taking his hand. Together, the four of them walked out of the room. River slowly moved ahead and took a turn. Mal looked at Kaylee questioningly, but she just nodded and they followed the psychic. They continued through the many twist and turns that River led them through. It was obvious from Mal's face that he was starting to doubt the girl, but then there were jogging footsteps from around the corner. Kaylee and Mal readied themselves for another fight, but River just held up her hand. It was a good thing that she did, too, or they might not have looked before shooting the Zoe that had just ran around the corner.

"Oh, _Gao Guhn_," she breathed and Mal smiled slightly at his first mate. She covered up her reaction immediately and motioned to them. "Come on, this way is clear."

They ran, following her back to the ship. They passed Jayne on the way. By his reaction, Kaylee could tell that Zoe and Wash had told the crew about them, but had clearly not expected for them to come with them. Zoe halted them with a hand as the sound of gunfire could be heard up ahead.

"Gorram it," Jayne grumbled.

"Jayne, do you have an extra gun?" Kaylee asked, already knowing the answer. The mercenary looked at Mal who gave a slight nod, surprising both Zoe and Jayne. Nevertheless, Jayne handed one over the Kaylee.

"Semi-automatic, six shot," he told her. Kaylee nodded her understanding.

"Stay here," she told them and ran around the corner before protests began. There were two men on this side of the doors that led to the bay that contained the ship. Coming up from behind, she was able to shoot both of them before they could suspect anything. Shouts came from the other side as they saw their fallen comrades and turned their fire to her.

"_Serenity _crew, please don't shoot me!" she called. "Your left side is clear!"

"Copy you, Kaylee!" she could hear a voice that sounded like Book's answer.

Looking out from her hiding spot, she could only slightly see the single man across from her.

"Niska is dead!" she called. "Your comrades are dead and soon you will be, too. Lay down your weapon and perhaps you'll live!"

The gunfire ceased and footsteps ran down the hall, away from them.

"Mal, you're clear!" she called and ran to the hangar bay.

"Kaylee!" Book exclaimed and swept her into a hug.

"Shepherd! It's good to see you! But careful, I'm covered in blood."

"So you are," Book said with a small smile, stepping back from her. He looked back at the door as the rest filtered back in. "Simon, River!"

"It is good to see a happy face, Shepherd," Simon said with a tired smile, shaking hands with the man.

"We got to go," Mal grunted, walking up the ramp. Everybody followed him up, but Kaylee stood, staring at the bottom until he turned to look at her. "Well, are you coming or what?"

She grinned and hurried up after him. Maybe things wouldn't be so bad after all.

**Yay! We're getting back together again! But how will everybody take it when it's not in the midst of battle? We'll have to see... Please feel free to favorite/follow and I would absolutely adore it if you would review. Last time somebody did, I started writing a 6,000 word chapter for you guys:D**


	24. The Reveal

**Whoo hoo! Two reviews in one chapter! I must've done something right:) Thank you so much to my anon reviewer and to tremerid who also favorited! One thing tremerid pointed out to me was that I've been misspelling Kaylee's last name throughout the story-_- Since it's continued this long, I'll just keep it at Fyre instead of her name in the series: Frye. As always, big shout out to my beta, KatsatheGraceling, who is also my best friend and helps me more than she'll ever know3 **

Kaylee shifted uncomfortably in the awkward silence that presided over the cargo bay of _Serenity_.

"So, um, how is this going to work?" Simon asked hesitantly. "Are we going to be dropped off on some distant planet again?"

"The Captain wouldn't dare," Inara said with a dangerous edge to her voice. Kaylee had been more than surprised to be greeted with a hug from the Companion, but decided that it would be best to not mention their last fight. She wondered what exactly must have played through Inara's head to defend her so strongly now.

"I agree," Book grunted. "Clearly, it is the will of somebody—whether you believe in God or not, Captain—for Kaylee, Simon, and River to be aboard this ship."

"I wouldn't mind not having to do the mechanic work anymore," Wash shrugged with a small smile at Kaylee. "I was hired to fly the ship, not repair it."

"This will be decided later," Mal said, not letting anybody else give their support. "Simon, get back in the infirmary and check over those that were injured."

"Yes, Sir," the doctor said quickly. He looked at Kaylee. "Come on. We need to see if it's possible to reattach that finger of yours. Thank goodness Zoe had the good sense to put it on ice."

Practically dragging her out of the room, both of them gave a relieved sigh to be out of the tension. Simon shepherded her into the infirmary and closed the shutters. He turned back and Kaylee couldn't tell if he was about to drool or cry at the sight of his medical equipment.

Not caring whether he was watching or not, she took off the military style coat that she had on, revealing the damage done to her chest and stomach.

"_Go shi_, Kaylee," Simon muttered at the sight before jumping into action. He pulled out a pair of tweezers along with a bottle of disinfectant and gauze.

Kaylee looked at the bottle of disinfectant. "You know that's not really necessary, right?"

Simon shrugged. "But it will make me feel better. And I'd know that your body isn't acting as an incubator for diseases that could harm the rest of us."

Kaylee shrugged and layed down on the table, grimacing a bit as the action pulled on her already healing wounds. After Niska's torture, she couldn't even manage a gasp as Simon began to dig into the closing bullet wounds to pull out the little pieces of metal: two from her chest, one from her stomach, and one from her arm. He then brought out her severed finger and, cutting open the stub that was left, held the appendage for just a couple minutes before she told him that it was healed enough and proved it by moving it around, for once thanking Niska for his insight for cutting off _her_ finger instead of Mal's, who would not heal so easily.

Afterwards, he cleaned all of her wounds and began to wrap and bandage them. Kaylee didn't stop him. She knew that while her wounds would be healed in the next few minutes, it wouldn't be much good if she paraded around the ship without one bandage on her. While Kaylee walked him through all of the wounds that Mal had witnessed, Simon steadily applied more and more bandages. By the end, she looked like some sort of half unraveled mummy with a hospital dressing gown over the top. She grimaced at her reflection in the mirror.

"If this is what it takes Mal to be convinced…" she sighed.

"Convinced of what?"

Kaylee nearly jumped out of her skin and wondered how she had not heard him approach. "Mal! Nothing! I was just saying that I hoped you'd… you wouldn't leave us on some forsaken planet and at least bring us to Persephone!"

Why, oh why had she said that? She was really in no position to be making demands and she could tell from Mal's darkening gaze that he didn't appreciate her guilting him.

Without saying a word, he nodded for Simon to leave the room and the doctor quickly did, shooting Kaylee a worried look. But he had picked up the same mood that Kaylee had and decided it was best to not anger the Captain further.

"We need to talk."

She had to try her best to not roll her eyes and instead kept her voice level. "Yes, I think we do."

Dropping the tough man act, he sighed and slumped down on the spare bunk in the room. "We have a problem here."

She silently waited for him to continue.

"On one hand, we can bring you back to Persephone, and I lose some of the best damn people I know. 'Cause I have no doubt that you're one of the best mechanics in the 'verse, Simon is a gorram good doctor, and his sister, well, she's a good kid. A bit weird, but I can deal with that. I'd also lose the whole faith of my crew. Inara would hate me, as well as Book and probably Wash, too. On the other hand, you can stay here, and your secrets put this whole crew in danger. Do you see my issue here?"

"I'm a danger to your crew, but I'm also a welcome part of it," Kaylee summed up for him.

"So here's the deal: you tell me one thing, just one, as a show of faith, and you'll be free to stay unless I feel that there is something else you're keeping from me that endangers the crew again."

Kaylee groaned and put her face in her hands. "Out of all of the things to ask of me, why did it have to be information?"

"Because there is something just… wrong with you Kaylee!" Mal said, his voice beginning to rise. "I don't know what gorram things have happened in your life, but now it's affecting mine and the lives of people I care about and I can't sit by and let this happen anymore!"

"Can't anybody on this boat realize that I'm just trying to protect them!" Kaylee shouted, losing her cool. She had been through one of the roughest months of her life, and she hadn't had a good night's sleep since… she couldn't remember when. She was sick of this. She had hoped that when she stepped foot on board, Mal would at least let her rest before beginning the interrogation, but obviously, that didn't happen. "Mal, what I know is not for the general public._ Who I am_ should not be known by anybody. The last time I told anything was to Niska to keep the siblings safe and do you know how that ended up?! I was tortured twice as much as any other prisoner! You know the hell you went through today? Imagine days and days filled with twice as much pain with no end in sight!"

"And do you care to explain to me how you survived a month with the demon?!" Mal shouted. "I nearly died today and if what you say is true and he tortured you twice as much as me, there is no way you should still be living!"

"You're right!" Kaylee yelled. "I should be dead! And you know what? I can't even tell you how many times I wished I was! In fact, I should've died long before I met you, but fucking fate has it's stupid fun and guess what? Here I am, trying to figure out how my whole life has gone to hell!"

"Well, I'm so sorry for your struggles," Mal bit out sarcastically. It was clear to Kaylee that he thought she was exaggerating.

She glared coolly at him. "You think that the Unification War was bad? If you lived three minutes in my shoes, you'd be begging to go back!"

"You bitch," Mal sneered and she knew immediately that she had gone to far, but she couldn't take it back.

"Yes, I've been everybody's bitch my whole life!" she laughed harshly. She turned to walk out, but Mal grabbed her arm, right where the bullet wound had been. She froze.

"If you do not let go of me in the next ten seconds, you're going to have bigger problems than me being on board," she threatened. She was sick and tired of this pull for power that always happened when she and Mal were left together. She just wanted to sleep for the next week and wake up at the end with a fresh start where she could hopefully keep her temper.

"We are not done here," he replied harshly, not letting go.

In a swirl of motion, she twisted out of his grip and had Niska's knife pressed against his throat. She glared straight into his eyes, but his weren't on hers. They were looking instead at her arm. She looked down in horror and realized that when she had escaped his grip, he had held on to the gauze bandage covering the wound, exposing her now healed skin. She backed up quickly, her hand going up to cover the area.

"Kaylee, what the hell?" Mal choked out, all anger forgotten. He approached her slowly, but she backed up until she hit the counter on the side of the room, horror evident on her face.

She _couldn't_ tell him! Forget hating her for keeping secrets, she would be a freak in his eyes and she had no doubt that he would quickly tell at least Zoe with the rest of the crew to follow soon enough. She would be thrown out into space or worse! And what of River and Simon? What would he do to them? She needed to be with them and he had all of the power over her at the moment.

"Let me see," he demanded. She shook her head silently, hoping that her begging eyes would convince him to not pry further. "Kaylee, move your hand!"

There was no point in denying it any further. He had seen too much. Slowly, she moved her hand down her arm, revealing the clean, smooth skin underneath. He walked towards her again and this time she didn't back away. He reached out with one calloused hand and touched the area.

"How…?"

"Mal…" Kaylee sighed.

"How, Kaylee!" he shouted and she flinched at his tone.

"I can't explain!" she shouted back before quieting. "Well, not exactly, anyway. You want an exact science, I can't tell you. It came as a sort of magic and I've had it ever since. I can't stop it, I can't change it. It's a blessing and a curse."

Slowly, he reached for her forehead. She didn't stop him as he peeled back the bandages from her face, revealing even more healed skin.

"_Yao Nu_," he whispered.

Kaylee could feel tears prick her eyes at him calling her a demon woman, but she held them back. If she could go through a month of torture with Niska, she could handle being called a name that was almost too close for comfort.

"Is this some sort of demon magic?" he asked quietly. At her faint nod, he took a step back and looked at her in disgust. "Who are you? _What_ are you?"

She could feel tears start to leak from her eyes. "I wasn't always like this. I was dying and somebody very close to me decided that my life was worth more than his so the child decided to sacrifice himself to save me. He traded his mortal life for my everlasting one."

"Everlasting?" Mal questioned, not coming any closer but some of the disgust leaving his face.

Kaylee pursed her lips. She might as well. He had learned of her healing already. It was only a matter of time. "Mal, I'm over five hundred years old."

He stumbled backwards, crashing against the chair in the center of the room. _"What?!"_

"Mal, please!" she begged, trying to approach him. "Can you not see why I didn't want to tell you? All that's accomplished from this is you wanting me off you ship even more than before and thinking I'm a freak to boot. And maybe I am! I have met my fair share of people over the years, but believe me when I tell you that this crew contains some of the people I've felt closest to my whole life!"

Tears were streaming freely from her face as Mal finally let her get close enough so she could place a hand on his arm. "I have always tried to keep my distance from people who I knew I was just going to lose in the future. This crew has been the first family I've had in a long time. This ship has been one of the only places I've ever called _home_."

Mal was silent for several minutes and Kaylee backed off, facing away from him and trying to get her emotions under control. It would be an understatement to say she was more than surprised when she felt herself be spun around and she was suddenly in the warm, strong arms of the man she had been arguing with only seconds before. She sunk into his embrace, feeling like she was accepted for the first time by him. Her sobs came back tenfold and he gently stroked her hair, murmuring in her ear.

"I've got you, _mei-mei_. You won't be alone anymore. We will be your family."

She heard the door open behind her but couldn't make herself turn to look as she heard several pairs of feet shuffling in. Only when she felt a hand on each of her shoulders did she look back into the tear stained face of Inara and the heartbroken one that Zoe bore. Both women pulled her into their arms and they stood for a good minute, supporting her. When she finally turned back, she suddenly realized that there was something wrong with the picture.

"Wait, how much do you know? What did you here?"

"Everything," Jayne grumbled from the entrance, holding a comm unit. She turned to look at Mal who, unabashed, pulled out the matching pair.

"You let them hear our whole conversation?" she glared.

He shrugged. "You always let out the most information when you're angry. Any confessions on board this ship shouldn't just be to me, they need to be to everyone."

She looked around at the whole crew standing around her. Inara still had an arm around her while Zoe had moved back to stand by a Wash who still had a stunned look on his face. She looked at Book, who shrugged slightly as if to say that while he didn't approve of their methods, he was glad that they knew now.

"I'm sorry!" Simon's voice said from behind Jayne. He pushed past the mercenary with his arm around River to stand in front of Kaylee. "As soon as I was out of the room, I was gagged so I couldn't warn you of what they were planning on doing!"

Kaylee laughed slightly. "It's all right Simon. I know that you would've helped if you could."

"So the doctor knew?" Mal asked, his voice remaining neutral.

She shook her head. "I only told him after we were left by ourselves."

"Kaylee, would you have ever told us?" Inara asked quietly.

"Inara, every person has their secrets. Mine just happen to be a bit bigger than most," Kaylee sighed. "Can you claim that there is one person in the universe that knows everything about you?" Reluctantly, Inara shook her head. "So, no, I wouldn't have said anything if I had a choice. I prefer to just pretend I'm normal most of the time."

"You could never be normal," Mal promised. "That, _mei-mei_, is why you fit in so well to this family."

**A bit shorter than what I've been posting, but this was just the best place to end. Don't worry if it's a little too fluffy, there are some big plot ****elements on the way! Kaylee has just gotten through one obstacle, but how will she handle the next? Check back next week! As always, feel free to favorite/follow and I would love it if you could give me some feedback! Reviews make me want to write more:D**


	25. The Interlude

**Please don't kill me! I know I've been missing for about a month and a half now, but I have plenty of reasons, believe me. Mainly it involves a One-Act Play competition that ate up ALL of my time (and I'm not kidding either. Rehearsal every day after school and most of the competitions were 18-20 hour, all day affairs). But I'm back now with a short interlude that will hopefully get me back into writing every week now. Thank you to whydoesitmatter1 for following and Klaus MacGrath for favoriting. Big shout out to VoviaVolcano and tremerid for ****reviewing. As always, this chapter would not have happened without my beta, KatsatheGraceling, who was on to me every week to see if I had time to write a chapter. I've kept you waiting long enough, onto the story!**

The darkness was all he knew. The darkness and the pain. He had long ago given up hope of rescue. He knew that nobody out there was listening.

Their names were Luclin and Ivon. He had never heard of the two before. Lucifer had kept them very well hidden. He doubted that even Raphael and Gabriel knew of their existence. Lucifer must have had a plan for them long before he was thrown into the cage, for these were humans, born long after the event. Lilith had been entrusted to create loyal servants for her master. Ones that would do as he wished and ones that would always remain at his side.

Drops of his blood, given to two children in the early days of humanity. Their powers could be bested by none other than the archangels themselves, of which none had known of their existence, save Lucifer. They were trained in hell itself by the most powerful knights and Lilith herself. He shuddered to think of what had happened down there, for all of their humanity was lost. All that remained was a cold, hard determination to rescue their master and a distinct indifference towards the loss of life. Alpha-witches, they called themselves. Even though they did not sire a bloodline leading off from them, they did have claim to being the first humans with supernatural ability granted by the forces of hell.

He supposed that in some ways he was fortunate that they cared little enough that they spoke freely in front of him on many subjects. He knew that they had worked their way into practically every government on Earth-that-was after Lucifer had been thrown back into the cage. They had been the ones responsible for the creation of the Alliance and for River's predicament. They would brag that they had just been looking for intelligent individuals to become the new leaders of Lucifer's army, but they had been handed a prophet instead. They avoided the subject of her escape and the consequent chase through the universe. He prayed that they would never reach her. He wasn't sure of their need for her, but it was certain that nothing good could become of two servants of Lucifer having control of a prophet.

He supposed that many would have killed him after he refused to give them her location, but these two men had decided to leave him alive. Whether for a bargaining chip or something else, he did not know. While his position among the angels was high, it appeared that they did not care for some blackmail of that sort. They were only concerned with River. None of the other angels knew that he had been captured. It was normal for them to not meet for months on end and he had only been missing for a month. In that time, he could feel that no harm had come to River, but he also had not felt her move. He wasn't sure if Kaylee had found a new place for the trio to settle, but there had been no need for him to worry for quite some time.

His head tilted slightly to one side as he felt a change in the prophet's position. He was hanging in the center of a room, his hands chained to the ceiling, his feet to the floor. His body was bloody and broken. To most, his head tilt would just appear as a slight lull in his neck, but to his captors, that tiny movement had them questioning.

"The angel lives," Ivon stated, narrowing his eyes. "Perhaps we have not been trying hard enough, Brother."

"Enough, Ivon," Luclin said sharply. "You know our purpose and you know his mission. A protector of the prophet is more valuable in our hands than dead. He still has use."

He wanted to ask them what more use they could possibly have for him, but the gag in his mouth stopped him.

Luclin walked towards him slowly. "Where is the prophet, Castiel?"

He turned his head away as much as he could.

"I said, where is she?!" Luclin demanded and backhanded him across the face, the latex covering his hand making the sting more pronounced. His head snapped to the side and he felt the neck of his vessel snap for what must've been the hundredth time since he had been captured. With effort, he moved his face back towards the witch. The gag had moved, enabling him to speak.

"Safe," he spat, blood going into his captors eyes.

Luclin merely grimaced and wiped it away with a white handkerchief. "Always the same answer. But I guarantee that she will not be so for long."

"We will have her, Brother," Ivon said. "And soon, our master will be called from the depths to greet his new army."

He could do nothing as the two brothers left the room, leaving him only with himself and his thoughts. _Let her be safe. Protect her, Kaylee._

**Short and sweet. Well... not sweet, but it definitely introduced a lot of plot in there and answers some questions about where Castiel has been. Again, I'm so sorry that it's taken this long to get this out there, and, as my beta said, "Get this thing posted and let them know you're not dead!" I'm still trying to get use to writing this story again, but know that if I ever disappear again, I WILL be back. I will never let this story, or any of mine, be abandoned. I'll see you next Sunday!**


	26. The Reconcile

**Yeah, so hello... Again, I'm so sorry for how long it's been taking me to get these chapters out. But as promised, this story will not be abandoned. I've recently watched Serenity again which has given me enough push to keep this going. The next few episodes aren't really going to happen so we can finally get to the final arc. Before we get to the story, I'd like to thank DarowdrynofArcadia and Shadowrayven for following, 1a2bcd3f for favoriting, Woeful Indeed and ravenmike for following and favoriting, and finally Jessica45395 for following, favoriting and leaving me a review:) One last huge thank you to my beta, KatsatheGraceling, for her never ending support. But I've kept you waiting long enough, onto the story!**

Kaylee hesitated as she stood outside of the shuttle door. A year ago, she would never have hesitated. She would have considered Inara's quarters to be a safe haven from the craziness of the ship, but no longer.

Yesterday had been the day that she, River, and Simon had made it back onboard _Serenity_. She had never thought that she would ever see the lovable hunk of junk again, but she supposed that this was always where she was going to end up. Fate loved to screw with her.

The unexpected confession of her age and her healing ability to the whole crew hadn't exactly been what she had imagined, but she was grateful that their first step hadn't been to throw her into the blackness of space. She had refrained from speaking any more on the subject and nobody pushed her to do so. She suspected that her fight with Mal had scared them more than they wanted to admit. She was nothing they could predict and nobody knew how to handle the news. She had spent the evening in Simon's quarters with River snuggled into her side. Most of the time had been spent in silence, just enjoying each other's presence and wondering how long the peace would last.

She hadn't gone to breakfast this morning and nobody had come looking for her. She had been hurt, but figured that they likely wanted to give her space. She had sat on her bunk for hours wondering what she wanted to do. The ship was traveling aimlessly as they tried to figure out their next course so she had all of the time she could possibly want and a good deal more as well. She could've gone to the engine room if she wanted to be by herself or to the infirmary if she wanted the comfort of her pseudo family in River and Simon. She even could've gone to Book if she wanted to discuss anything Supernatural related. Yet, her feet had made her wander in the direction of Inara's shuttle.

Before suspicions had ruined their friendship, Inara had been one of her closest friends. Hidden behind her peaceful exterior was a kind, gentle, and funny person. They use to joke and have fun, but Kaylee's secrets had ruined that long ago. She might have been seeking some form of nostalgia, but she knew that things could never go back to normal.

"Knocking is the hard part," a dreamy voice came from above her.

Startled, Kaylee looked up to see River sitting in a crevice made by pipes and random bits of metal in the side of the ship.

"One day, _mei-mei_, you're going to have to show me how you get in those place," Kaylee said with a small laugh. River grinned and shook her head.

"Never!" she declared.

Kaylee continued to laugh as River crouched in her spot before jumping to a pipe a few feet away. She swung on it like a trapeze artist before letting go and executing a perfect back tuck and landing on her feet on the walkway a little bit away from Kaylee.

River looked at her somberly. "Knocking is the hardest. You'll never know if you don't try."

"I'll never know what?" Kaylee asked, confused, but River just grinned once more and sprinted daintily away. "Freaking psychic..."

Kaylee turned back towards the door. She took a deep breath and raised her hand. After three steady knocks, there was a gentle, "Come in."

Taking another deep breath to steady herself, Kaylee pushed the door open and let herself inside. Inara was lounging on the couch, nursing a cup of tea, but she stood immediately upon seeing Kaylee.

"Kaylee, come and sit."

Kaylee gave a shy smile and sat opposite the Companion, legs folded underneath her.

"I would say that you've healed well, but that would be an understatement," Inara said with a wry smile.

"Just a bit."

They gazed at each other for a moment in silence.

"Is there something you wished to talk to me about?" Inara asked.

"I… I'm not sure," Kaylee hesitated. "I just kind of came here."

Inara looked down into her cup of tea. "We were good friends at one point, were we not?"

Kaylee was a bit startled at the change in subject, but went along with it. "Yes. I suppose we were."

"And you blame yourself for our falling out."

It wasn't a question. Inara could read a person like a book, even one as complicated as Kaylee.

"Because it was my fault. My secrets would drive a wedge into any friendship. I'm ashamed that you were hurt because of it."

"It takes two to create a friendship, Kaylee," Inara said plainly.

"So? It only takes one to break it," Kaylee muttered.

"No. As friends, I should have respected your privacy. I had no right to demand answers from you that you were not willing to give. And now that I at least know a partial truth, I still feel guilty because it was not willingly given nor was it something that I felt I had earned the right to know. If I had, you would have told me yourself. I understand Mal's reasoning behind the move he pulled, but that does not ease my guilt over your unwilling confession."

Kaylee closed her eyes against the tears that wanted to fall. "Inara, I should have told you all long ago."

"Remember your reasons then and don't let your feelings of the present cloud your previous judgement. You said something in the infirmary about the information you possess being able to harm us. Is that still true?"

Kaylee nodded.

"And now you would make the decision to endanger our lives because you know that our feelings would get hurt in the future?"

Slowly, Kaylee shook her head.

"So are you able to forgive yourself now?" Inara asked.

Kaylee realized now why she had subconsciously come to Inara's shuttle. It wasn't to confront a past friendship, it was to confront her past choices. Inara had a way of making everything seem clearer.

"Why didn't I come to you sooner?" Kaylee said with a choked laugh from the tears running down her face.

Inara looked down, ashamed. "I'm not perfect, Kaylee. As much as my pride would have me say that it was your fault for keeping things from me, my heart knows that you were right to do so. I have had a lot of time to reflect upon our friendship after our fight. It made me realize that our friendship meant more to me than I had realized. Do you realize that you're the only person on this boat that made an effort to speak to me while I was here. You were one of the only ones to not look down on me because of my occupation or find it humorous. Don't get me wrong, I saw your disgust when we first met, but you made an effort to get over it and get to know me as a person, not a job. You were one of my closest friends, Kaylee. And I'm ashamed that I pushed you away with my curiousity."

"There's an old saying on Earth that was: Curiousity killed the cat. It always seemed so obvious what it was speaking about. Curiosity can get you in trouble, it can hurt you. Be careful not to go too far. But I believe that it isn't just a warning to the cat, but to those around it as well. Think about it. Those that would say the phrase would be those trying to look out for the cat, not the cat itself. But why say the phrase? Try to prevent the cat's demise, yes, but also to prevent the harm done to those around. Does that make any sense?"

"I believe so. You are saying that curiosity doesn't just harm the curious person, but rather those who are close to them and are trying to protect them from being harmed. You are inadvertently saying that I didn't take your advice to just let things go so I ended up harming myself and you in the process."

Kaylee nodded sadly. "We harmed each other."

"And I think that I'm speaking for the both of us when I say that I'm very sorry for that. It seems that you're not the only person that needs to forgive herself," Inara smiled grimly. "I've never really been in a position where I've had to. Part of the conditioning that Companions go through is a sort of self discovery. We are trained to know our own minds in ways that most are not even aware of. So I hope that you will understand not only how distraught I am that not only did I miss my own part in breaking our friendship, but also how difficult it is for me to admit that I do not know my own self as well as I thought."

"Inara, I have lived centuries longer than you and I still don't know who I am. Many would think that in that time, I would figure out everything. What I like, what I dislike, how I'd react when faced with whatever. And it's true in some respects. I originally trained in the medical field, as a mortician to be exact if you can believe that. But over time and many, many years of college and technical schools later, I found my love for mechanical engineering. But that's just something I'm passionate about. That's not who I am. And I sure as hell have never been in any sort of situation like this before."

"Well that makes two of us," Inara laughed. Kaylee joined her and for a moment it felt like normal again, but they both sobered up quickly. "Where are we now?"

"I think," Kaylee started slowly. "That I would like to try again. Now, with less secrets and maybe a bit more understanding, things will work out. Because I really enjoyed our friendship, Inara, and that's something I think I need right now."

"I agree."

The two girls smiled at each other. Maybe, together, they could work towards and understanding that would heal them both.

* * *

After a very long conversation with Inara that went late into the afternoon, both girls went to the galley for dinner together. Maybe in her giddiness from the rekindled friendship, she forgot that the rest of the crew would be there too until she walked in and the conversation stopped.

"Well don't just stand there. Food's gettin cold," Jayne grumbled.

Silently, Kaylee and Inara took their spots at the table and the general clatter of serving food began again as everybody took what they wanted.

"So, Mal, any idea where we're heading?" Wash asked. "I've got to pilot her somewhere."

"Not too sure yet, Wash," Mal answered neutrally. "We've still got to figure out some things here before I start looking for another job."

The table fell silent again and people continued eating until Kaylee sighed and placed her fork down.

"Would somebody please just address the elephant in the room?"

And cue the confused looks from all sides. Kaylee groaned into her hands. She hadn't said something like that in decades and now, when people are just getting use to the idea of how old she was, she was suddenly going to spout Earth that was sayings?

"Would somebody please just get whatever they need to say off their chests?" she rephrased.

"Fine," Jayne said enthusiastically. He drew out his gun. "So say that I shoot you right here-"

"Jayne!" Mal reprimanded. "No shooting at the dinner table."

Jayne reluctantly put his gun away, grumbling under his breath. Mal turned back to her.

"But seriously, if he did…"

"I'd have a bleeding bullet wound," Kaylee answered. "I'd be conscious and feel all of the pain that comes with a bullet wound, but I wouldn't die. Take a pair of tweezers and pull the bullet out, the skin will close right up. If it stays in, my body will eventually push it out. Takes a bit longer, but I always heal from any wound within 24 hours."

"Cool," Jayne smirked.

"Not cool," Kaylee answered cooly. "Say I was captured by reavers. I would like to die, but I can't. There's nothing I can do about it."

Everybody at the table looked down, not wanting to consider such a situation.

"Any other questions?" Kaylee asked neutrally.

"Is there anything that can kill you?" Mal asked quietly.

"I'm sure, but if we do encounter anybody that can, I will be forced to tell you a bit more of my story, something that I'm not quite ready to do yet. For the moment, let's just say that no mortal or mortal weapon can kill me."

Silence again. It was becoming a trend that she hoped would break soon.

"So what was Earth that was like?" Wash asked.

Kaylee grinned. Finally a question that she wasn't totally uncomfortable asking.

"Well, I was born about a decade before the turn of the century, going into the 2000s, I mean. It had only been a couple decades since man had gone to the moon and it would be several more before man reached mars. I lived in the United States for my childhood. It was just me and my mom and we moved around a lot. It's so funny looking back at all of the small things that use to define America and how they really don't even exist now. American food for example. Cheeseburgers, french fries, hot dogs, fried chicken. You don't see any of that anymore and from the looks on your guy's faces, you've never even heard of them. Maybe if I could ever find all of the ingredients I'll make you some. Music has changed a bunch, too. Music was always changing drastically, but I guess I remember the pop era of the 2000s more than anything, although I enjoyed music from earlier decades a bit better. Technology wise, we were really entering the era of the computer. They were becoming more and more commonplace in the 90s. By the early 2000s, everybody had them. technology advanced in leaps and bounds from there as we started getting our first "smart phones", or phones that could do everything that a computer could do. That was pretty much what I was born into. Anything else you want to know?"

Most of the crew had a far away look, imagining what life had been like.

"And so you lived through the times described in the Winchester Chronicles, right?"

Kaylee glared at the Shepherd. She would've thought that her obviously NOT volunteering the rest of her life story would've been indication enough that she didn't want to talk about it.

"The third testament of the Christian bible?" Inara questioned.

"Yes. They are said to have been written around that time," Book answered calmly, ignoring Kaylee's glare. A rational part of her mind found a bit of logic in Book's approach as he clearly just wanted all of the information out there and no more secrets on board the ship, but she wasn't ready yet.

"Did everybody during the time of the Messiah know him? I doubt it. Besides. If you read the Chronicles, you'd know that the brothers traveled around a lot and didn't actually know that many people. Just because they were supposedly alive during the early years of my life doesn't mean that I knew them."

Now it was Book's turn to glare at her. He had given her a perfectly reasonable opening to ease the ship's crew into the world of the supernatural and she hadn't taken it. Too bad. She would decide when to reveal the rest of her life, not him.

"That's a shame," Inara mused. "I may be Buddhist, but it would have been interesting to know that two vitally important figures to the Christian religion did exist."

"Well I've never been much for religion. Never really helped me out," Kaylee muttered.

"Um, Kaylee, you said something about demon magic being the cause of your extra long life," Wash said cautiously. "Is that something you can explain or…"

"Maybe later, Wash, but that is a very long story and I have to regain so much trust if there's even a slight chance that you will believe it. It's not an easy one to hear nor an easy one to believe."

Wash slumped in his chair, but nodded his agreement.

"If that is all for the night, I'm going to bed," Kaylee announced. "This interrogation is probably going to continue tomorrow, but I need my sleep before it does."

"Of course, Kaylee," Mal agreed. "There will be a meeting right here during lunch tomorrow. This will not be a time to continue questioning Kaylee, but a time to figure out the future of this boat. Everybody will be there. Any questions?"

Everybody shook their heads silently as they began standing up and going about cleaning up.

"Oh, and Jayne," Mal continued. The whole room stopped to look. "Absolutely no shooting Kaylee at any time."

"Gorram it, Mal!"

**Good? Alright? Terrible? Let me know your thoughts! The next chapter is already a work in process, so I know I can have that out by next week:) I do leave next Tuesday to go to Europe for three weeks so I won't be able to have any chapters out then, but I'm hoping to get the rest of the story written during the trip so I can easily finish it up when I get back. See you next week!**


	27. The Fate

**Hi people! I promised that I would have another chapter out before I left and so here I am! Not any response from last chapter, but I know that I disappeared for a couple months so I'm okay. Any way, this is the last of what I'm calling the "Talk and get over things" chapters and some action is back! As always, thanks to my awesome beta and ****best friend, KatsatheGraceling, who has never stopped encouraging me. Onto the story!**

It would be an understatement to say that Mal was in way over his head. First it had been Simon and River, and then the whole Kaylee thing. He wasn't sure what the gorram universe had against him, but it sure wasn't pretty.

He wasn't a fool. He knew that there was way more to the story than Kaylee was saying. He was also fairly sure that Simon knew everything. That man was so protective of his sister, he wouldn't let anybody near her that he thought to be remotely suspicious. Simon was so close to Kaylee now that Mal knew that there was a shared connection between them that didn't just come from hardships. As odd as it might seem, Mal would almost say that they shared the same burden. How that could be, he wasn't sure, but it was there.

"How're we doing, Captain?" Zoe asked formally as she came into the bridge. Wash had decided to catch some sleep since they were just floating aimlessly through space and they didn't really need a pilot at the moment. Mal had agreed to watch the bridge while he was away.

"Same as always."

"Are we?" Zoe inquired, taking the copilot's seat. She sighed and looked down at her hands. "Not sure there's such a thing as normal anymore."

"Well we sure ain't the people that screwed that up," Mal muttered under his breath.

"We're as much at fault here as any other person on this boat," Zoe said cautiously. She held up her hand as Mal turned to her angrily. "Hear me out. Now, I know we ain't the ones with the problem, but it was us who took these people in and agreed to harbor them. We're not the Alliance, Mal. We don't kick people out or hurt them because they don't fit into our model. Look at the people here. We've got a couple of damaged soldiers, a mercenary, a prodigy pilot with weird tastes, a Shepherd, a companion, a doctor and his crazy sister who are on the run, and a centuries old mechanic with way too many secrets left. There's no person in the verse who could've predicted that _this_ would've been the crew of this ship. Now, we've got our problems, but even I have to admit it's almost like something brought us together."

Zoe stood up. "Maybe the Shepherd was onto something with this whole God thing. Sometimes you've just got to believe that everything has a purpose."

With that, she left, leaving Mal to his thoughts. He realized with a start that the hardest person on the crew, excluding himself, had just admitted that there was perhaps such a thing as fate. He didn't know what to think of that. He doubted that there was any person on the whole crew that wouldn't have their own view on the matter. Zoe had said her part, and there wasn't anybody he trusted more than her.

* * *

Book was surprised when he answered the knock on his door to a very lost looking Mal.

"Is there something I can do for you, Captain?" he asked.

"I think I'm in need of a Shepherd."

Book immediately opened the door to his quarters all the way and gestured for Mal to take a seat on the bed while he pulled a small chair out of the wall. Mal sat uncomfortably on the sheets while Book clasped his hands in front of himself and leaned forward.

"Anything you say to me will never leave this room," Book vowed. "You may tell me anything and no one will know."

"Thank you, Shepherd," Mal began. "I think it is obvious why I'm here."

"Yes, little Miss Fyre's news did shake up some perspectives," Book commented.

"You never seemed that shaken up 'bout it," Mal observed.

Book sighed. "Mal, I am a Shepherd. I do not tell, no matter how much I wish to. Kaylee did come to me. But she needed a confidant, not a counsellor. I became that for her."

"So you knew this whole time?" Mal accused.

"Parts. But Mal, I don't think that anybody on this ship could know everything about Kaylee. She is too special and too important. When eventually you come to realize her destiny, perhaps you'll realize just how small we are and everything around us is. Do we matter? More than you can know. But do we exist as anything more than tools to do God's work? That is up to you to answer."

There was silence for a minute before Mal spoke up again. "I don't think you knew, but I was religious before the war. Somethin' about it… It changed the way I looked at things. To see my friends gunned down in front of me made me doubt that there was any God out there. Why would He allow for something so terrible to happen? Made me realize that if you wanted anything out of this life, you had to get it for yourself. You couldn't rely on God to get it done for you."

"All of us face doubts in our life," Book said slowly. "It's how we get through them that defines our faith. You're wondering now if you did the right thing by forsaking God during that war. You wonder whether this is the path that God has set you upon and whether you should follow it or get the hell away, pardon my language. As a Shepherd, I would tell you that God has always guided you, whether or not you believe in him. As a counselor, I'd say that you should try to understand exactly what you're getting into and whether this is something you can and want to go through with. And as your friend, I'd say to let things play out. I know that things seem impossible, but there are some amazing things out there that you haven't even discovered yet. I promise, Kaylee never wanted to hurt you or the crew. She's in a very difficult position as well. Your decision is whether to follow her on her path or to let her go."

"And how are you supposed to make that sort of decision?" Mal asked, agitated. "I've already tried to let her go on her own path, but that didn't really stick. If what you say is true, who am I to doubt fate?"

"But there is a difference between fate and reading into things," Book answered. "Do you truly believe that fate brought you back together, or are you just looking for some metaphysical confirmation of something you want to believe?"

"Is there a difference?"

"Look," Book sighed. "I can't make you believe. There is nothing that I can say to change that. But the fact that you searched out this meeting in the first place clearly shows that you are looking for something. Whether you find that in God or someplace else, that's your business. But I believe that I gave you enough to think on."

"I think I may be more confused now than when we started," Mal muttered.

"I would say that it's simple if that were in any way true. You are searching for your path in the verse and it won't be easy, no matter what you choose. Talk to Kaylee. I don't believe that she's ready to reveal everything yet, but maybe you will have a clearer view of what exactly is facing you."

"I'm not sure if Kaylee will trust me after the last stunt I pulled."

Book grimaced. "That perhaps wasn't the wisest course of action. But I believe that she will talk if you make the effort to. She may seem like the devil to you right now, but maybe you'll see that she's not really a different person than who she was before."

"She lied to us for so long."

"You would, too," Book pointed out. "It's not like that's something she could just tell you during your first meeting."

"I suppose I can't blame her for everything," Mal sighed, standing up. Book stood as well and they shook hands. "Thank you, Shepherd. There ain't a thing clearer, but I do feel better."

"That's my job," Book said with a slight smile.

* * *

"Do you believe in God, Kaylee?"

She didn't jump. She knew that Mal had been hovering at the entrance to the engine room for quite some time, making up his mind as whether to enter or not, but she had pretended to not hear his approach.

"I do, but perhaps not the one you believe in," she answered neutrally. "He, of course, made mistakes, just like everybody else."

"Did I miss something in Church?" Mal asked sarcastically.

"I believe that the Christian God is real," Kaylee explained. "I just don't think that He's quite how He is always thought of. I believe that he does have a hand in everything, but he mostly just likes to let people do their own thing. If you read the original Winchester Chronicles, he's more described as a really powerful being, but not an omnipotent one."

"You talk like yah know him," Mal grimaced, coming further into the room. "Let me ask you something else, do you believe in fate?"

"Malcolm Reynolds, are you actually asking me if there's such a thing as destiny?" Kaylee tried to joke, but Mal didn't show any signs of amusement. She sighed. "With my life, it would be stupid to not believe."

"Do you think that you were meant to be on this boat?"

"Yes," she replied simply. "Look at what happened. We were left on some random planet and there was no intention of ever seeing each other again. The 'verse is big. It was quite some coincidence that we ended up meeting once more."

"I suppose."

Kaylee continued messing with a stubborn part of the engine as Mal was lost in his thoughts.

"Book said that I shouldn't judge you until I knew your story. At least, that's what I think he said. I kinda left with more questions than answers."

"I always found that trying to answer the big questions left me with more. But that's what you do, you break things down and start from the bottom, making your way up the list," Kaylee answered.

"Kaylee, I don't know how I can trust you completely if I don't know the whole story, but I'm willing you give you a chance. I'm still not sure if there's a God out there, but there sure as hell is something out there that wants you on this boat."

"I'm sorry for putting you through this, Mal. I promise that this was never what I had intended," Kaylee apologized.

"Yeah, Book said something like that, too," Mal grumbled. "I don't know what it is about you, Kaylee, but people are very protective of you once they get to know you."

Kaylee smiled a bit as Mal began to leave. She hesitated with herself for a second before calling out, "Wait, Mal!"

He turned and looked at her expectantly. She took a deep breath. "If you really want to know more about me, the Winchester Chronicles are a great place to start."

Mal gave her a short nod. Both of their heads snapped up as the ship began to rumble under their feet and the engine started to turn.

"I thought that we hadn't decided where to go yet," Kaylee said, confused.

"We haven't," Mal confirmed. He walked over to the radio on the wall. "Wash, come in. What's happening?"

There was only static. Kaylee and Mal glanced at eachother before sprinting towards the bridge. The door was closed so Mal rapped on it hard.

"Wash? What's happening?"

Mal jammed the button to open the door, but it was clearly locked. He turned to look at Kaylee and she shrugged helplessly. Zoe ran up to them.

"Mal, What's going on?"

"Gorram it! As if I know!" Mal cursed. "Where is your husband?"

"He's still down in the bunk," Zoe answered, worry fleeting through her eyes.

A feeling of dread began in Kaylee's stomach as she thought of a possible explanation. Cautiously, she walked closer to the door, Mal letting her pass. She leaned her ear against it and could hear little giggles as well as multiple switches and buttons being pushed.

"River!" she called. "What are you doing?"

Mal and Zoe stared at her in shock. She gestured for them to not say anything. There was silence from the room.

"The voices won't be quiet," the voice eventually came. "They're all in my head. And they're all so loud!"

"River, I know that it's loud," she said, soothingly. "Can you just concentrate on me, on my voice? Try to shut out what the rest of the verse is trying to tell you."

"No, you're loud!" River protested. "So much violence. So much death. Past, present, future, it all comes to one bloody end. There is nothing to stop it!"

The girl's voice had slowly crawled up to a screech as she ended her rant. Kaylee closed her eyes and banged her head against the door. Maybe it hadn't been such a good idea for the prophet to concentrate on Kaylee's future. If there's one thing she knew about being the subject of a prophet, it's that her life would likely not be pretty. The Winchesters had already proved that one. She wasn't surprised that there was violence and death in her future, but she needed River calm enough to open the door.

"Okay, River, try to focus now. We need you to open this door so that nobody get's hurt."

"Everybody get's hurt if you come through now!" River yelled. "I need to show you something!"

"What? What River, please! Just answer the door!" Kaylee begged, panic beginning to creep into her voice. What was so important that River had to take over the ship? They had just gotten back! What was so important for the poor girl to show them that their momentary peace had to be disrupted?

There was no answer. Kaylee slowly slid down the door until she was kneeling on the floor.

"Kaylee, what is that girl doing?" Mal demanded.

"I don't know," Kaylee answered, the blank expression on her face scaring Mal and Zoe.

"Come on, girl, you have to have some idea," Zoe said gently, kneeling next to Kaylee. Kaylee was slightly surprised at the show of affection from the second in command, but it didn't show. She was numb at the moment.

"I guess I don't know her as well as I thought," she murmured.

"Go get Simon," Zoe commanded the groggy looking Wash who stumbled upon the scene. He straightened up immediately at her tone and ran away without a question. Zoe leaned back down towards Kaylee.

"Look, Kaylee, it's been clear since the beginning that you and River have had some sort of bond. River trusts and listens to you more than any other person on this ship except for Simon. You know her better than any of us. Can you try again?"

Kaylee shook her head as Simon ran up to the scene.

"What happened?"

Mal quickly explained the situation while Zoe continued to try to comfort Kaylee. Simon grimaced and shook his head.

"I can try to get her to open the door. But if Kaylee didn't have any success, I doubt I will."

It turned out that he didn't even need to try as the lock on the door clicked open. Simon and Kaylee were the first people through the door. River spun around in the pilot's seat and pointed at computer behind her, grinning.

"The angel was lost, but I found him!" she declared.

Kaylee froze. Bits of memory from when they had been captured by Niska's men came back to her.

"_The Angel won't come! He's trapped. He won't come!"_

She had been too disoriented at the time to really think over what River had said, but she should've. Castiel had been captured. How could she have ignored that? He would've come if he had known their situation with Niska. And now River had apparently found where was he being held. How the hell was she suppose to get Mal to go along with this one?

"That's great, River," Mal said condescendingly. "But would you kindly get out of the chair?"

River glared briefly at him, but hopped out of the chair and bounced to Simon's side. Kaylee had wandered over to the computer and glanced briefly at the computer with a planet rotating on it and facts scrolling along the side in Chinese. _Miranda_.

**Yes! That transition has been gnawing at me forever! I realize that things aren't exactly set up how they are at the beginning of the Serenity movie, but chill, I'm doing things for a reason. As always, feel free to follow/favorite and I would love to get a review!**


	28. Author's Note

**Hello everybody. I'm afraid ****the dread that every reader experiences when they see the words "Author's Note" isn't unfounded. I'm unfortunately here to announce that this story is going on hiatus for the foreseeable future.**

**For those of you who want to leave now because you've gotten the important news, go ahead. But for those of you who want to stick around to hear explanations (and I know that I'm one of those people so I don't doubt that there are more of you) keep reading.**

**A few months ago, my beta and best friend, KatsatheGraceling, was having some issues writing one of her stories. I gave her what I believed to be the best advice I could- Write for fun. If you're not writing because you want to, what's the point? However much you may believe so, your readers don't control your life and, though it hurts to say, you really don't owe them anything. They are strangers reading a stranger's work.**

**It wasn't until a couple days ago that I realized that the same philosophy applied to me. It hurt to admit that for nearly half a year now, I really haven't had any fun writing this story. I had so many great plans, ones that I still hope get written eventually, but that I can't find myself writing at the present time. I would reluctantly begin a new chapter every afternoon, but I realized that my writing became choppy, uneven, and uneventful (this was around the time that Kaylee, Simon, and River were stranded on the planet. I'm sorry for those absolutely horrid chapters. I plan on going through later and fixing so many things in this story). I tried to give myself a bit of a break, especially as I got involved with One Act and AP exams coming up. When I tried to get back into the story more, it was with a clearer head and way better writing thanks to writing a couple other fics during that break, including Possessed (if you've read it) which is a work I'm extremely proud of with a sequel that I'm working on as well.**

**Anyways, those well written chapters were hard to get out on a weekly bases and I found myself slipping from my promised Sunday posting again. I had hoped that my trip to Europe (which was absolutely incredible!) would give me the time to just think and plan the story without feeling pressured to write the chapters themselves. But then I come home and I can't write any more than I could before hand.**

**I also found myself facing real life. Considering I'm average aged for this site to be writing (and while we might all be a little crazy, I doubt many creeps come to a fanfiction website to find people. Especially not in an author's note twenty-some chapters in), I don't have a huge issue saying that I'm going to be a high school senior next year. College applications open in a week, which is INSANE. I also have marching band starting August 3rd (because we're crazy in America, foreign readers). I'm taking five AP classes as well as a Dual Credit class this year. No sane person would put that on themselves, but what can I say?**

**Anyway, the point I'm trying to make is that not only am I not finding any will to write this story, I also have ready-made excuses for not doing so and I'm afraid that all this story would be reduced to is a chapter every month with a million excuses in between. I don't want to drag it out for you guys. **

**When it occurred to me that I should put this story on hiatus, I talked to Katsa. She reminded me of the same advice I had given her and told me to think about myself for once. I'm the sort of person who felt immensely guilty at not giving you guys a chapter every week and she reminded me that as much as I feel like I should, I am not required to write on a given schedule. I need to write when I feel like it, or I'm not going to be happy.**

**And so we come to me writing this note, explaining my thoughts in the small hope that at least a couple of you will understand. Please believe me when I say that I don't want to leave this story as it is. If I realize in a year or so that I really have no desire to finish, I'll post an outline of how I imagined the rest of the story going. On the other hand, if somebody gets really impatient for that and thinks that they can do a better job themselves, PM me and we'll see if we can work it out so you can finish writing it so that everybody can enjoy. However, I don't want some half-assed job. I'd only accept somebody finishing this story if they truly want to and are willing to at least listen to what I had intended (although if they have better ideas, I'd be happy to hear them).**

**This story has been one of my biggest projects ever and I hate to leave it on this note, but I feel that for my own mental health, I have to. I'm sorry for disappointing you all. I'd like to make a final thank you to everybody who has followed, favorited, and reviewed over the course of this story. I'm especially sorry to Fortune's Choice, who followed and favorited, as well to Wildelven Pathfinder and Church 017 for following since the last chapter. I'm sorry that this is that first alert that you guys get. And one last thank you to DarowdrynofArcadia for being my last review.**

**Till the next time**

**Pointeofdance**


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Firefly, Supernatural, Adventure, Supernatural